


if teardrops could be bottled

by sunlacie



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Cuddling, Fansite Master!Mark, M/M, Mark is whipped, Slow Burn, Soloist!Haechan, Touch-Starved, aka the fansite au that i wanted so i wrote it, author has never been to korea and it shows, everyone in nct shows up, everyone is whipped for hyuck, fansite au, hyuck is lonely, too many idol cameos, unbetaed
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-08-01
Updated: 2019-10-01
Packaged: 2020-07-28 17:20:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 37,770
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20067706
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sunlacie/pseuds/sunlacie
Summary: fullsundialPreviews from 190105 Idol Radio appearance #haechan #idolradioLiked by@hyuuu_ckand83,755 others@hyuuu_ckOMG HE LOOKS SO GOOD SKSKSK I'M CRYING??????[253 likes]@ldhyuckthank you for this food[80 likes]@sunshinesunthank u @hyuck's stylists for putting him in this outfit i owe u my life[61 likes]-In which Mark isfullsundial, the man behind the biggest fansite of the nation's soloist, Haechan.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [IvyPrincess](https://archiveofourown.org/users/IvyPrincess/gifts).

> This is my very first k-pop fic! I hope you guys like it. Thanks to everyone who showed support for this concept over at Twitter!
> 
> This one's for Ivy, who just kept screaming "YES" every time I sent her something from the draft, and screamed "yES" when I asked her if twenty pages into the draft was a reasonable time to start making things romantic
> 
> -
> 
> **Notes:**  
\- all the song titles for Haechan's songs+albums were made up by me!  
\- in that vein, _Chrysanthemum_ is meant to sound similar to _House of Cards_ by BTS. _Don'tcha_ is 100% just _I'm Not Sorry_ by Dean  
\- there's a group called NCT Seoul in here but none of the members are actually from nct they're nameless ocs  
\- as someone who ults Hyuck this is purely self-indulgent so,,,,,,,,, yea  
\- HAPPY BIRTHDAY MARK LEE

**fullsundial ** Previews from 190105 Idol Radio appearance #haechan #idolradio

Liked by  **@hyuuu_ck ** and  **83,755 others**

**@hyuuu_ck ** OMG HE LOOKS SO GOOD SKSKSK I'M CRYING?????? _ [253 likes] _

**@ldhyuck ** thank you for this food  _ [80 likes] _

**@sunshinesun ** thank u @hyuck's stylists for putting him in this outfit i owe u my life  _ [61 likes] _

_ [View all 7,880 comments] _

-

Mark closes Instagram, a smile already on his face as his notifications blow up. It's always like this whenever he posts previews (the full, HQ pictures waiting on his computer to be uploaded at the optimal hour), but the fans are going crazy over this particular photoset.

He can't blame them - Mark swears every single fansite stationed outside the studio's windows went ballistic when Haechan showed up wearing a white graphic shirt and tight black jeans. On anyone else, the outfit may have looked basic and even a little plain, but Haechan's languid posture and rose gold hair managed to make the simple outfit look incredibly sophisticated.

The sound of camera shutters going off had been absolutely deafening once Haechan took his place in front of the camera, preparing to dance to his song,  _ Don'tcha _ . It's a song from his debut mini album from almost three years ago, but it's still one of his most popular tracks, with arguably his most iconic choreography. Even with zero backup dancers, his stage presence was off the charts, deftly performing his signature spin kick move with an easy smile.

Behind the line of fansites, a huge crowd of fans had gathered, screaming the song fanchant wildly. A good amount of them had brought their sunflower lightsticks, waving them in broad daylight. Mark had to stand firm against the crowd of fans pushing behind him, lest his camera be jostled and his shot get ruined.

His musing is interrupted by a notification on his phone - Haechan has just tweeted something. Mark eagerly presses the notification, wondering if it could be one of his rare selcas. He quickly finds out that it isn't, instead seeing a picture of Haechan and the host from Idol Radio.

**Full Sun☀ @official_haechan ** Thank you Idol Radio! I had a lot of fun ~ and thank you to all the Sunflowers who showed up!🌻 I love you guys! 💛💛💛

_ [1.7k replies | 5.6k retweets | 12.7k likes] _

**haechan's left leg @hyuckster06 ** WE LOVE YOU MORE!!!!!

_ [3 replies | 43 retweets | 202 likes] _

**keira | sunflower @mylight ** U LOOK SO GOOD BBY im crYING

_ [3 replies | 30 retweets | 288 likes] _

**loving haechan hours [open] @hyucksflower ** ksunflowers are so lucky they get to watch him dance dontcha with their own two eyes sksks

_ [10 replies | 140 retweets | 546 likes] _

_ [View more replies...] _

Mark saves the photo as usual, moving it immediately to the  _ 1901 _ folder in the  _ Haechan _ album. He hadn't noticed it earlier, but Haechan must have been wearing his insoles, judging from how he's standing nearly at the same height as the host, who's quite tall. Mark smiles fondly - obviously, his fans love him with or without the insoles, but it's too cute how Haechan tries to appear taller whenever he can.

Stretching, Mark yawns, noting the time on the clock. For every thousand or so pictures he takes at Haechan's public appearances, he has to prune it down to a total of ten or fifteen to enhance and eventually post. The selection process takes quite a lot of time and effort (if only because Haechan looks good in every picture), and it's gotten late - he still has to leave early for his job tomorrow.

Checking his social media profiles quickly one last time, Mark prepares for bed, falling asleep to the notes of  _ Don'tcha  _ still lingering in his mind.

-

"Here you go," Mina says, placing a cup of coffee on Mark's desk. "You look disgustingly cheerful for 8 a.m., what happened?"

Mark looks up from his phone, grinning. "Nothing," he says gleefully. A fellow fansite has just reached out to him, asking if he wanted to collaborate with them to make a celebratory kit for Haechan's debut anniversary in April. "Nothing  _ you'd  _ care about, anyway."

"I resent your elitism," Mina sniffs. "Just because I don't have the time to camp outside of his public appearances doesn't mean I'm not a fan - "

"This is boring fansite stuff," Mark says, waving her off. "I promise. It's not interesting at all. I'll tell you about it when I have more details though?"

"Fine," Mina says, shrugging. "The previews looked really good last night by the way!" she calls out as she leaves, and Mark chuckles sheepishly in response.

It's no secret in the office that Mark, lead software designer, lives a double life as one of Haechan's biggest fansites. He's far from the only fan in the workplace - there's Mina, Yoojung, Sohye, among a few others. There's also his loud and obnoxiously tall friend from marketing, Yukhei, who when asked what he likes about Haechan always replies, "he's, like, super pretty, man! And he does this spin kick thing like  _ whoosh whoosh  _ \- " before digressing into increasingly enthusiastic sound effects.

It's not like Mark had seen himself becoming a fansite when he was in college, rapidly ingesting cans of Red Bull as he stared at blocks of code in an attempt to make something functional out of them. It's just that almost three years ago, on April 6, he chanced upon an MV release of a new male soloist from a relatively small company. He vaguely remembered seeing promotions and teasers for the debut, scrolling past them without much thought. There wasn't much hype surrounding the upcoming new idol, owing to the lack of promotion, but he was curious, and so he clicked the link.

Looking back, the MV itself hadn't been anything spectacular, probably due to the fact that KHC Ent was still such a young company and this was their first time debuting an idol, and a solo act at that. Despite that, and despite the insufficient promotion, the MV managed to gain almost five million views overnight, a near miraculous feat for a total newbie.

Twenty-one year old Mark, listening to the achingly sweet lyrics of  _ Chrysanthemum _ wash over him in his dingy apartment, quickly understood why.

Haechan was  _ incredible _ .

His honey-like voice drifted clearly through Mark's cheap headphones, matching extremely well with the graceful, almost balletic choreography. The video had him performing with back-up dancers for most of the song, but the first chorus had the background fading to black, leaving Haechan alone with a single spotlight focused on him. It's this part that had gone viral - a twenty-second loop of an eighteen-year old Haechan, with black hair and sun-kissed skin, twirling slowly as strings rise in the instrumental to accompany his voice.

His debut mini album had been received phenomenally well, and  _ Chrysanthemum _ would go on to nab him three wins in the span of a month.  _ Don'tcha _ was probably the most popular track on the album, with a fanmade lyric video garnering almost four million views. This would lead to the hasty release of a new MV to meet the demand of fans. The new video was even simpler than his debut MV, more a well-produced moving dance practice video than an actual music video, but it didn't matter -  _ Don'tcha  _ promptly went viral too, spawning numerous dance covers and tutorials from people who could never quite pull off his signature spin kick with the same flair.

Mark could proudly say that he'd been a fan from the start - before Haechan got his first win, before he started calling his fans "Sunflowers," before he even dyed his hair for the first time, his light brown hair becoming an instant hit with the fans. He isn't an elitist like Mina keeps teasing - the more fans Haechan has, the better, after all, and who is he to keep anyone from admiring one of the most talented soloists in the industry right now? 

Still, although he knows he's just another fan, Mark is proud of the place he's carved out for himself in the fandom. His handle,  _ fullsundial _ , is one of the most popular across multiple platforms. He'd known that he'd  _ really _ made it when Haechan himself retweeted one of his posts, a photo set from one of his charity performances. When he saw the notification that said  _ @official_haechan quoted your tweet and said: thank you @fullsundial for capturing this special day! _ he'd had to pinch himself, convinced that his post couldn't have possibly been noticed by Haechan.

But it had; his account blew up rapidly, jumping from around four thousand followers to fifteen thousand over the course of a few days. He went from being a fansite to being  _ the  _ fansite, and the rest was history.

Mark doesn't notice that he's still smiling to himself until he hears Mina muttering "What a weirdo," snapping him out of his trance to look reproachfully at her. It's one of the few days he actually shows up to the office, since he normally works from home. His job as a software designer gives him flexible hours, which is extremely convenient for his fansite activities.

"Can't you daydream later? It's so creepy when you start smiling at nothing," Mina tells him, when he starts spacing out again. "Sohye sent you an email, have you even seen it yet?"

"Oh, sorry." Sohye peeks out from her cubicle at the mention of her name, waving at Mina and Mark. He smiles at her and waves her off, turning back to his laptop. He inhales, adjusting his glasses. Time to focus.

-

**once a once @jihyoes ** _ uploaded a video _

ok so my friend and i were jogging early in the morning and we saw???? this???? an ambulance outside of khc building???

_ [2.8k replies | 14k retweets | 10.3k likes] _

**once a once @jihyoes ** _ uploaded 3 pictures _

there's people coming out, they're being very quiet and almost no one is around rn

_ [3k replies | 14.5k retweets | 12.3k likes] _

**once a once @jihyoes ** _ uploaded a video _

OMG IS THAT HAECHAN THEY'RE CARRYING OUT ON A STRETCHER WHAT HAPPENED

_ [6k replies | 27.8k retweets | 20.7k likes] _

**once a once @jihyoes ** the ambulance is gone now and the people/employees have gone inside I'm not 100% sure it was haechan but it looked like him

_ [3.6k replies | 17k retweets | 16k likes] _

**once a once @jihyoes ** i hope everything is ok

_ [3.2k replies | 7k retweets | 14k likes] _

-

**Soloist Haechan Injured in Dance Practice**

www.koreaboo.com/news/soloist-haechan-injured-in-dance-practice - 7:54 a.m. January 10, 2019

KHC Ent released a statement on Twitter, SNS, and Instagram declaring that popular soloist, Haechan, has sustained an injury during a morning dance practice. The announcement was made after rumors of his injury were spread online, alongside photos and videos of him being transferred to an ambulance.

"Haechan is currently receiving medical care," read the statement, written by KHC founder and CEO, Kim Heechul. "The initial report from the doctors indicate that he fractured his right tibia after twisting his leg during a morning dance practice. He is currently undergoing further examination. We ask for the fans' understanding and support during this time. Thank you."

No statement was given about the soloist's upcoming comeback, which is set to be released on March, a month before the second anniversary of his debut.

Wishing Haechan a speedy recovery! Tweet us your messages of support to Haechan @koreaboo!

**Hyuck's moles @starryhyuck ** WISHING YOU A SPEEDY RECOVERY HAECHANNIE!!! Please don't worry about us sunflowers, we will wait as long as we need to so focus on healing!

_ [6 replies | 156 retweets | 204 likes] _

**haechan's left leg @hyuckster06 ** "morning practice" so ure telling me haechannie is practicing in the goddamn wee hours of the morning when he should be sleeping?

_ [56 replies | 588 retweets | 789 likes] _

**juliet @sunjulie ** haechannie must be devastated ;_; he's been so excited about this comeback and performing the songs for the sunflowers eye -

_ [10 replies | 1k retweets | 1.6k likes] _

_ [View more replies...] _

-

" _ Mark, _ " Mina begins, and the trepidation in her voice is evident even through the phone. " _ I resent the fact that I even have to do this, but are you okay? _ "

Mark sniffs, lip wobbling as he puts the ice cream container down on his coffee table. "It's just not fair, Mina!" he blubbers, talking over Mina's very audible sigh. "He's been working so hard for this comeback and I'm sure the company overworks him since he's their most popular idol and now he's injured from practicing and he's confined at the hospital and I'm sure he - "

" _ Mark, shut  _ up _ , please, _ " Mina cuts him off. He closes his mouth, pouting. " _ God, I should've guessed you'd be worse than Yoojung. She's been mumbling the lyrics to  _ Give Me Your All _ every time she passes me - _ "

" _ Give Me Your All _ was the best b-side on  _ You _ !" Mark wails, loud enough to drown out Mina going " _ oh my  _ god _ , _ " on the line.

" _ Okay, look, I called in to check if you were okay, and you're obviously not, _ " she continues. " _ You still have a job to do though, and 'extreme depression due to favorite idol getting injured' isn't a valid excuse not to turn in your work for today. Mr. Choi doesn't really care if you don't come in today or for a week, but he  _ will _ fire your ass if you don't finish the reports you need to do. Okay? _ "

"Okay," Mark says, pitifully.

" _ You're such a baby, oh my god. Oh, Yukhei from marketing just said he'll bring lunch over to your apartment -  _ not you too! What the fuck _ \- okay, I can't deal with you guys, Yukhei's doing his sad puppy impression and it's too early in the morning for this shit. I'll call you again later, okay? Get some work done." _

She hangs up, leaving Mark alone in his living room, camped out on the sofa with his favorite watermelon ice cream and a replay of Haechan's very first  _ Chrysanthemum _ stage playing on his TV. Miserable, he sighs and gets up, retrieving his laptop from his room. In this mood, he's in no state to do anything creative or to check on the firestorm that's surely brewing online. Might as well get started on his reports.

A few hours later, he gets a text from Yukhei:  _ im outside man buzz me in _ . Mark does, and Yukhei enters, crouching to fit through the doorframe and carrying two takeout bags of Thai food and a six pack of beer, despite it only being noon.

“It just sucks, Yukhei,” Mark later says miserably, poking at his pad thai. “I mean it sucks even more for him, not even about the comeback or anything, just the fact that he’s injured and in the hospital - can you imagine how painful that must be, breaking your leg?”

“I know, right?” Yukhei says thickly, nodding. He’d made the mistake of putting on a playlist of Haechan’s early live stages on the television, thinking it would cheer Mark up. However, Yukhei’s a Sunflower too, and watching videos of a teenaged Haechan with black hair, dancing to  _ Chrysanthemum  _ with a smile on his face and no idea of the heights he'd soon be reaching proved to be an unnecessarily emotional experience for the both of them.

(“He’s so tiny!” Mark had wailed, watching as eighteen-year old Haechan performed the finishing fouettes at the end of the choreography. Yukhei had nodded emphatically, eyes shining as he crushed a beer can in his grip.)

Mark sniffs, before looking up, noticing the clock on the wall. “Oh, hey dude, don’t you have to get back to work? I’m not coming in today.”

“Oh, fuck! Jungwoo’s gonna have a cow if I’m late again!” Yukhei abruptly shoots up, sending empty boxes flying from his lap. “Oh shit,” he says, wincing at the mess. “Sorry about this, Mark, but I gotta bounce! Text me later, yeah? We can hang out if you’re still feeling down.”

“Sure, thanks,” Mark calls out, watching Yukhei tear his way out of the apartment. He didn’t get to tell the tall man about the stain of tamarind sauce on his shirt, but people at marketing are probably already used to Yukhei’s constant state of dishevelment.

Alone again, Mark watches as Yukhei’s playlist loops onscreen, going back to a performance of  _ You, My Sunflower _ . The cheerful, mellow song washes over him, soothing him if only marginally. He sighs, picking up his phone against his better judgment. It’s probably for the best if he has  _ some  _ idea of what’s going on online.

-

**Idol Haechan to Go on Hiatus Due to Injury**

www.soompi.com/article/190110/idol-haechan-hiatus-due-injury - 10:34 a.m. January 10, 2019

Popular soloist Haechan is currently recovering from an injury, and is set to take an indefinite break from activities only three months before his highly anticipated comeback in March.

At 10:15 a.m. today, KHC Ent shared another official statement following the one they made a few hours prior after rumors about Haechan’s injury started circulating online. “The doctors have confirmed that he has fractured his right tibia,” the statement read. “Haechan will not be participating in any activities for the foreseeable future. He will be focusing on resting until he is fully recovered.”

The statement continues, “All essential preparations for his comeback in March are already complete. He will not, however, be participating in any public promotions or appearances. As of now, his comeback is to be postponed. We do not yet have a new date for its release. We hope that the fans continue to support him through this ordeal.”

We wish Haechan a full recovery!

**3,099 Comments | Soompi**

**vminkookie - 2 hours ago**

we sunflowers will wait for the sun to shine bright again <3 love you haechanah

_ [+3,447] _

**ex0suh0 - 2 hours ago**

get well soon haechannie bby ;u;

_ [+2,920] _

**haechans_leg - 2 hours ago**

i really really really hope khc ent is going to let him rest and help him to get better soon and not rush it just so he can promote again smh

_ [+5,112 | - 12] _

**yunHo - 2 hours ago**

get well soon haechannie, fighting!!! we love you and we’ll be waiting for you

_ [+277] _

**chanbaeked - 2 hours ago**

i hope he rests well and doesn’t try to rush anything,,,,, ;u;

_ [+344] _

_ [See 3094 more comments…] _

-

**Full Sun☀ @official_haechan ** hello Sunflowers TT I just got home from the hospital ~ will you guys sign my cast?

_ [17.5k replies | 54.6k retweets | 104.3k likes] _

**hello hyuck! @sunnies ** yes we will bby!!!! Get some rest, ok??

_ [2 replies | 30 retweets | 339 likes] _

**keira | sunflower @mylight ** we love you our sun!!! I'm gonna draw sunflowers all over your cast ~

_ [4 replies | 533 retweets | 1.2k likes] _

**haechan loving hours [open] @hyucksflower ** imma sign my name with a thousand hearts!!!!

_ [2 replies | 122 retweets | 257 likes] _

_ [View more replies…] _

-

“The usual?” Guanheng asks, already picking up an empty cup and starting to write “Mork,” like he had from the first time Mark had come to the cafe. Mark rolls his eyes, swatting at his hands. “Yeah, yeah, give me the usual.”

“One disgustingly sweet iced caramel macchiato, coming up,” Guanheng says blithely, punching in his order. “Hey, Xiaojun, you make this. It makes me sick having to pump that much syrup into his coffee.”

The other barista, a perpetually soft and sleepy looking man named Xiaojun, nods his assent, taking the cup. He moves lethargically, and while that may be a problem in other cafes, this particular one is almost always empty. Mark had stumbled upon it a few months ago by pure luck, tucked in an alley between a bookstore and an ox-bone soup restaurant. He'd asked Guanheng before why they were so out of sight, and the man had just shrugged.

"Our boss doesn't really care," Guanheng had said, preparing Mark's vanilla latte with a look of disgust on his face. Mark would go through their entire repertoire of sugary coffee drinks before settling on the caramel macchiato. "I'm pretty sure Kun-ge opened this place just because he felt like it. He has another job, so he doesn't care if this place earns or not."

"But isn't it just an unnecessary expense for him to keep this place open with four employees?" Mark had met the two other employees, Sicheng and Yangyang, on other occasions. Between the four of them, Mark has had the top twenty best cups of coffee in his life, and then some.

"Like I said, Kun-ge doesn't really care," Guanheng said, handing Mark his latte. There's a lazy attempt at foam art on top, a barely legible flower of some sorts. Mark had seen Guanheng make an impossibly detailed landscape in his own cup out of boredom once, so that was a bit insulting. "I think he just wanted to use this building instead of letting it go to waste or selling it. He converted the three floors upstairs into apartments, too, so he earns from that at least."

Mark opens his laptop, settling into one of the cozy booths. Xiaojun brings him his coffee. It's still a bit chilly to be drinking iced coffee, but they keep the shop pleasantly warm. Sometimes he manages to come when there are other customers - an employee from the bookstore outside, the occasional middle-aged businessman, or a tenant from upstairs - but today, like most days, it's just him. Xiaojun disappears into the back, either to heat himself a croissant or take a nap. Guanheng props his feet up on the counter and starts playing music on the sound system, some recently released song from his favorite girl group. It's not loud enough to be distracting, a pleasant beat in the background.

A nice, productive hour passes easily. Mark orders a hot cappuccino after finishing a report, if only because Guanheng refuses to make him any of the sugary drinks on the menu. Mark hasn't gone to the office for a few days now, opting to work from home. Yukhei's dropped by a couple more times, and Mina checked in on him yesterday, but there isn't any pressing need for him to show up. Still, he thinks, stretching, he should probably go in tomorrow. Even if only to reassure Mina that he isn't still a pathetic, sobbing mess.

"Hello?" Guanheng says. Mark looks over to find him speaking on his phone. "You coming? Yeah, we're empty - well, no, we have one customer, but Mark's chill, he won't care." He looks up and catches Mark's eye. "You're chill, right?"

Bewildered, Mark shrugs and nods, lamely giving him a thumbs up. Guanheng snorts and looks away. "Yeah, it's basically like no one's here. Hm? Yeah, Xiaojun's in, but I think he's napping or something. What's wrong with me, huh? Anyone can make you your stupid iced americano - fine, I'll wake him up. Are you sure you don't want me to just bring it up?" He pauses, then rolls his eyes. "Fine, sure. Back door's open. See you."

"Who's that?" Mark asks when he hangs up.

"A friend of ours," Guanheng says vaguely, walking towards the back room. "He doesn't like crowds, so he always makes sure no one's around before he comes in here."

"Oh," Mark says. This cafe is definitely for that person, then. He turns back to his laptop, frowning at the email that's just popped up onscreen. It's from his boss, about a new potential client looking to have a website designed for their business. He's so busy looking over the details that he misses the sound of the back room door opening.

"Excuse me for thinking you wouldn't come for another twenty minutes," he hears Guanheng say. "I can't find Xiaojun - I don't know all his nap spots. I'll make you your americano."

"You don't put enough ice in it!" someone, male, whines. Huh. It doesn't sound like Xiaojun, but the voice is strangely familiar. An email notification pops up, from Sohye again. Mark clicks it, groaning internally when he sees it's about the new intern messing something up in the system again.

"Then I'll make it and then you can add the ice." There's whirring, presumably the espresso machine turning on. "I don't know why you keep ordering it, you don't even like it and you always end up making me finish it."

"I don't know why you're complaining, hyung; you  _ like _ americanos. It's like I'm paying you to make yourself a coffee."

"Kun-ge doesn't make you pay for anything, so that argument's invalid." There's shuffling around in the back. Mark picks up the little teaspoon that had come with his cappuccino, tapping it absent-mindedly on the saucer as he stares at his screen.

"Oh, Mark, you want some more coffee?" Guanheng calls, presumably noticing the clinking sound he's making.

"Sure," Mark says absently. "Will you make me a macchiato?"

"Just because you said that, I'm making you another cappuccino," Guanheng says. Mark laughs, leaning out of the booth to look at him. "One day you're gonna make me another caramel macchiato and I swear - "

He freezes.

"And you swear?" Guanheng prompts, looking at him. He notices Mark's open jaw and follows his gaze. "Oh,  _ huh _ . So I guess you know Donghyuckie then?"

_ No fucking shit. _

_ Donghyuckie _ , Guanheng had said. Donghyuckie, or Donghyuck,  _ Lee motherfucking Donghyuck _ , a.k.a. Haechan, a.k.a. Mark's - what? Idol? Obsession? Hyperfixation for almost three years strong? - is standing at the counter, a cup of dark brown coffee raised halfway to his mouth, two crutches resting on the granite surface.

"I didn't peg you to be the kind who follows idols," Guanheng says, oblivious to Mark's ongoing mental breakdown. He turns to Haechan, who's staring at Mark with wide eyes, like a deer caught in the headlights. "Sorry, Hyuckie, but Mark's really chill, I promise - "

"Lion cub guy!" Haechan exclaims, pointing at Mark.

Mark almost chokes. " _ Lion cub guy? _ " he wheezes.

"Yeah!" Haechan says, nodding. A grin makes its way onto his face, slow and absolutely blinding. "I remember you from my first fansign! You were like, one of the only guys in line, and when I looked over, you yawned really wide. You know those GIFs of baby lions yawning? Well, you looked like one, so that's what I've been calling you in my head!"

"You  _ know  _ me?" Mark asks disbelievingly. There's no way this is happening, but the wildly amused expression on Guanheng's face says otherwise.

"Yeah?" Haechan says, tilting his head. His face is bare, his rose gold hair peeking out messily from the black bucket hat he has on. He's dressed in a warm beige sweatshirt and black shorts, and he's the most beautiful fucking person that Mark's ever seen in his life. "You're a fansite master, right? You're  _ fullsundial _ !"

Now,  _ that  _ is truly shocking. "You  _ know _ who I am?"

Haechan laughs. "You're hard to miss," he says, smiling. "You were at Idol Radio, weren't you? I saw you!"

"Wow, Mark," Guanheng says, a shit-eating grin on his face. "I didn't know you were such a big fan of Donghyuckie here."

"Why is it so noisy?" A sleepy voice asks. Xiaojun pushes the back door open, blinking at all of them. "Oh. Hi there, Donghyuck. Did you want another americano?"

"I already made him one," Guanheng says, as Haechan sets his drink down to hug Xiaojun. "Hey, Xiaojun, did you know Mark's a really big fan of Donghyuckie?"

"Yeah, I did," Xiaojun says, yawning. He pats Haechan’s head affectionately. "Remember that time you put on one of Hyuckie's albums? Mark was smiling and bobbing his head to the music the whole afternoon. You told him he was being disgustingly cheerful."

"Oh, right!" Guanheng exclaims. Haechan laughs, looking pleasantly surprised. Mark wants to melt into the floor and disappear, never to return again. "Hyuckie, how do you know him?"

"Like I said, he's pretty hard to miss," Haechan says.  _ Donghyuck, Donghyuckie, Hyuckie. _ Both Guanheng and Xiaojun are being awfully familiar with him. Haechan lets go of Xiaojun and grabs his crutches, limping over to Mark's booth. It's only then that he notices the cast on his right foot, a little sun doodled near the toes.

"Hiya," Haechan says, smiling shyly. Mark can think of about a hundred people off the top of his head who would kill to be in his place. Yukhei wouldn’t, but he  _ would _ pull out the most lethal puppy-pout in his arsenal. “I’ve got it right, haven’t I? You’re the fansite master,  _ fullsundial _ ?”

Mark nods, too dazed to articulate any of his swirling thoughts. Haechan grins, and carefully lowers himself into the booth, opposite Mark. “Um… I guess it’s obvious that I’m a fansite, if you’ve noticed me taking pictures, but how did you know which one I was?”

“Ah!” Haechan says, brightening. “Do you remember that charity performance I did, a few months after I debuted? The one in Seoul Grand Park?”

Mark does - it’s the photoset from that day that Haechan had retweeted on Twitter, sending Mark into fandom prominence. “Yeah,” he says, smiling slightly. “You retweeted my post about it, I remember it very well.”

“So I was right!” Haechan says. His smile turns sheepish. “See, I noticed you from one of my first performances - I was really curious about you, but I couldn’t think of any way to approach you? So that day, when I saw you in the crowd, I looked into your camera and did the mini-heart pose. I figured you’d upload it, so after the event, I went online and looked for whoever would upload a picture of me doing that pose and looking into the camera. It took some time, but I found your account!”

"What if it hadn't been him, though?" Guanheng asks. Mark almost jumps in his seat - he's forgotten that he's still here. Xiaojun's already disappeared again, probably until the end of his shift.

"I mean, I searched really carefully," Haechan says, shrugging. "I guess I shouldn't have retweeted it right away if I wasn't a hundred percent sure, but I did the same thing a couple more times at some more events, and it was still his account, so."

Guanheng comes over with two cups. "You just got lucky, probably." He sets another cappuccino down in front of Mark, and something topped with an obnoxious amount of whipped cream in front of Haechan. "I'm going upstairs to work for a bit, if anyone comes in, you know what to do."

"Yell for Xiaojun-hyung, wait ten seconds, then tell them you're closed," Haechan recites, saluting him. "Where's my americano?"

"Chugged it," Guanheng says, already leaving. "I have a paper due tomorrow, I need it. I'll come back to close up in two hours."

"Paper?" Mark repeats, once he's left. "Guanheng's the same age as me, is he still in school?"

"Guanheng-hyung is studying to get his master's degree," Haechan says, licking whipped cream off his cup. His expression brightens when he tastes the liquid underneath, and Mark's hands itch with the visceral desire to grab a camera and document it. "He's really smart - he's usually studying or something when I come over to visit."

That sounds like a far cry from the Guanheng that Mark knows, who's usually playing a game on his phone when he comes in. "You guys seem close."

"I'm here a lot," There's a milky white moustache above his lips, and Mark doesn't know if he's disappointed when Haechan wipes it off. "I'm friends with Yangyangie and Sicheng-hyung, too, if you've met them. And Kun-hyung, of course! I'm closest to Guanheng-hyung and Xiaojun-hyung, because they live in the unit across from me."

"You  _ live _ here?" Now the comment about going upstairs makes sense - Guanheng  _ lives _ in the apartment he's mentioned.

"Yep! I've lived here for almost a year now, after I moved out of the company dorm. One of my friends from home is good friends with Kun-hyung, and that's how I found out about this place. It's perfect, isn't it? It's nice and cozy, and private, too."

The word  _ private _ jumps out at Mark, its significance not going unnoticed. "Your secret is safe with me, by the way," he says sincerely. Haechan lowers his cup to look at him, confused. "I won't tell anyone that you live here, or that I met you here. I can even stop coming here if it makes you - "

He's cut off by Haechan's laughter. "Guanheng-hyung was right when he said you're a funny guy," he says, giggling. "Why would I want you to stop coming when I've been wanting to meet you for ages?"

"I - " Mark's impending mental breakdown is thankfully postponed by the sound of his phone ringing. "Um - hold that thought - "

" _ Hello, Mark? _ " It's Mina.

"Yeah, uh, hello - hi, Mina." Haechan raises an eyebrow, smile just the tiniest bit mischievous. "What's up?"

" _ Mr. Choi told me to ask you if you've seen his email already. About a new client, I think? _ "

"Oh, crap." In the ensuing excitement, Mark's forgotten to reply to his boss's email. He quickly scans through the message again, looking at the abandoned draft he'd started on. "Yeah, I saw the email, but I got distracted. Tell him I'll take over, and I'll work out all the details by tonight, yeah?"

" _ Alright, thanks. He's also asking if you're coming to the office tomorrow, what should I tell him? _ "

"I'll come to work tomorrow, don't worry," Mark says, trapping his phone in between his chin and shoulder as he starts to type his reply on the laptop. "Please tell him thank you, and sorry for not replying promptly."

" _ Sure, sure. See you tomorrow, then. _ "

"Yeah, bye." The minute she hangs up, he lets out a huge sigh. "Y'know, I was about to ask you if that was your girlfriend, but I'd feel sorry for her if you sigh like that every time you talked to her," Haechan says, amused.

Mark laughs, surprised. "Mina has made it clear that she'd never date me, even if I never asked," he says, recalling the incident fondly.

("I'm sorry, but you're like a brother to me," Mina had said, completely poker faced. "And not like a cool older brother, more like the embarrassing baby brother I wouldn't allow to hang out with me and my friends. No offense."

Newly employed Mark had blinked, terrified. "I just wanted to know what kind of coffee you want because I'm getting some for everyone," he said, completely cowed.

"Oh," Mina said. "Mocha latte, then. And I stand by everything that I said.")

“She’s a coworker - she called because I forgot to reply to an email my boss sent me.”

“Oh - oh, sorry, am I keeping you from working? Guanheng-hyung mentioned that you usually get work done here, sorry.” Haechan looks genuinely remorseful as he lowers his cup, and it makes Mark hasten to reassure him, “No, no! It’s fine - and it’s all already good. It’s true I get work done here, but I go here to relax, too. Don’t worry, Haechan-ssi.”

At that, the idol makes a face. “You don’t have to call me that,” he says. “Call me just Donghyuck - I prefer for my friends to call me that. Oh! Since you’re the same age as Guanheng-hyung, can I just call you Mark-hyung, too? I’ll probably slip up and call you that, anyways.”

Mark swallows. “I don’t mind,” he says nervously, then decides,  _ fuck it _ , and takes a leap - “Donghyuck-ah.”

The answering smile on Donghyuck’s face is positively  _ blinding _ .

-

**Full Sun☀ @official_haechan ** hello Sunflowers! 🌻It’s a bright day out today in Seoul ~ How are you guys? I hope your enjoying today outside, unlike me TT

_ [3.4k replies | 13.5k retweets | 20.2k likes] _

**haechan’s left leg @hyuckster06 ** aww haechannie :’( i hope ur spending the day in a nice way even tho ure inside!

_ [2 replies | 120 retweets | 267 likes] _

**Hyuck’s moles @starryhyuck ** the sun is shining brightly for u haechannie! ☀☀☀

_ [4 replies | 445 retweets | 629 likes] _

**juliet @sunjulie ** its brighter now bc of u our fullsun!

_ [3 replies | 221 retweets | 530 likes] _

_ [View more replies…] _

-

It takes Mark approximately three days to convince himself that he hadn’t dreamt up his whole meeting with Haechan -  _ Donghyuck _ . The day after they met in the cafe, he’d gone in to work so dazed that he nearly knocked poor Sohye to the floor when he walked into her as she was leaving the office.

“Oh my God! I’m so, so, so, so sorry, Sohye, I didn’t see you!” Mina peeked out of her cubicle to catch a distraught Mark grabbing Sohye by the shoulders and apologizing profusely.

“Mark-ssi, it’s okay, I’m fine - ” Sohye had tried to say over his blubbering, but it went unnoticed, and she turned to Mina, eyes pleading for help. The other woman had sighed, getting up from her desk to set Mark straight.

“Are you okay? You seem more distracted than usual, and that’s saying something,” Mina had asked, accompanying him to his desk after getting him to stop begging Sohye for her forgiveness. “Is there some news about Haechan that I missed? Are you still depressed over his injury or something?”

_ I met Haechan yesterday! _ Mark screamed in his head, sorely tempted to scream it out loud as well.  _ I met him yesterday, he’s real, he’s shorter than me, and he really has a mole on his Adam’s apple and I wanted to touch it, like, so bad! I also know what he looks like with a milk mustache now and I’ve never wanted to tattoo anything onto the back of my eyelids so bad! Did I mention he asked me to call him Donghyuck? _

“I’m fine,” he croaked out instead. “Just woke up on the wrong side of the bed.”

That day, he hadn't gone back to the cafe - partly to finish assigning tasks to his team for the newest client (he could barely look Sohye in the eye as he asked her to take over designing the logo), and mostly because he was afraid that if he went back, he'd discover it had all been his imagination. He'd go back, ask for Donghyuck, and Guanheng would laugh at him and never stop laughing, and he'd never have a good cup of coffee again in his life.

The next day, when he came back, Donghyuck was already there, sipping tea lazily as he scrolled through his phone. "Hyung!" he greeted Mark, beaming, and the older man immediately forgot what he was so worried about.

Today, he's at the cafe again, and this time it's Sicheng and Yangyang at the counter. Yangyang kind of reminds Mark of a baby sheep with his fluffy, curly hair, and Sicheng… well, Mark could probably count on his fingers the number of times he’s heard the man speak. He must be nicer than Mark’s initial impression of him, though, because he doesn’t say or do anything as Donghyuck clings to him from behind, peeking at the video he’s watching on his phone.

Yangyang bounces over to them, coming through the back door. “What’re you guys watching?” he asks, encircling Donghyuck’s waist. The idol seems to lean into his touch, nuzzling into his shoulder. He’s very touchy, Mark’s come to notice. It’s cute how the four employees indulge him. 

“Minecraft,” Donghyuck answers, causing Yangyang and Mark to laugh in surprise.

“Donghyuck’s choice,” Sicheng says dryly. “I was watching a drama.”

“Oh! Speaking of dramas, Mark-hyung, did you know that Sicheng-hyungie was cast to be in a drama? He was going to be in that remake of  _ Meteor Garden _ , but he turned it down, can you believe that?”

“Wow, really?” Mark says, impressed. Sicheng pinches both of Donghyuck’s cheeks reprimandingly, but he only bares his teeth in response. The Chinese man truly does have the look for such a high-profile drama, and Mark wonders why he turned it down. He voices as much, and Sicheng frowns. “I didn’t want to,” he says, shrugging. “I wanted to focus on dancing.”

“Shichung-hyungie’sh the  _ besht _ dansher,” Donghyuck says, cheeks still trapped in Sicheng’s hold. He makes kissy faces at the other man until Sicheng sighs, releasing him. “He’s really, really good! He’s helped me a lot before, when I couldn’t get the hang of new choreo or moves. He’s my  _ favorite _ hyung.”

“You’re only saying that because Guanheng and Xiaojun aren’t around,” Sicheng says, rolling his eyes affectionately. Donghyuck beams at him, tucking himself under his arm.

Yangyang bounds off to the booth beside Mark's, his favorite place to curl up in. Donghyuck cuddles Sicheng for a few more seconds before following, their giggles audible behind Mark. True to his stage name, Donghyuck really is a bright, cheerful person, but he's a lot more tactile than Mark could've expected.

"Mark-hyung!" Yangyang calls out, a few minutes later. Mark leaves his laptop to go over to them with his coffee, curious. "Come look at this!"

"Yangyangie, no - " Donghyuck tries to say, but Yangyang pushes his face away as Mark settles into the seat in front of them. "Settle this for us, will ya? Which one is the better look? This one - " he swipes to show an image of Donghyuck with silver hair and smudged liner, dressed in a holo blazer from his MAMA performance in 2017, " - or this one?" The next image is Donghyuck probably a few weeks later, his silver hair faded slightly. He's styled in a dark red suit made of crushed velvet, which Mark recognizes from one of his concerts.

"It's the one in the holo blazer right? Hyuckie says he likes the red one because the holo outfit was too much, but he was at MAMA, of course they had to dress him up!" Yangyang says, zooming in and out of the image.

"It was itchy," Donghyuck pouts. "It was hard to smile all throughout the performance in that jacket."

"You did go viral after that stage though," Mark reminds him, recalling how the hashtag  _ HaechanMAMA2017 _ had trended after that performance. Donghyuck smiles sheepishly as Yangyang says, "I told you so!"

Mark chuckles, taking a sip of his coffee. As he does, Donghyuck seems to get an idea. "Hey, Mark-hyung, that reminds me," he says, leaning against Yangyang. "Can I ask how you became a Sunflower?"

Mark chokes on his coffee, coughing profusely onto the table. Yangyang squirms and shouts, “Ew, hyung!” as Donghyuck reaches across the table to pat him on the back, looking close to bursting out in laughter. “Sorry, were you not expecting the question?” he asks, giggling. “I’ve been dying to ask you since we met!”

“It was a little sudden,” Mark says, face red as he regains control over his breathing. “You don’t think it’s weird though? That I’m a fan?”

“It makes me happy!” Donghyuck declares, smiling. “It makes me think that all kinds of people like my music. It’s nice that I can reach more than just my so-called target demographic.”

“Yeah, hyung, didn’t you know? Haechannie’s popular with all types of people,” Yangyang says, pinching Donghyuck’s cheek. “Kids, old grannies, even some middle-aged businessmen that we get in here - all of them have a favorite Haechan song. He isn’t the nation’s soloist for nothing!”

“That’s not a real thing,” Donghyuck says, but he can’t fight the smile on his face. “Anyway, hyung, won’t you tell me?”

“It’s not an interesting story,” Mark says, fighting to keep from blushing. “Just, ah, when  _ Chrysanthemum _ came out, I was still in college. Uh, compsci major. I think I was in the middle of cramming for a major exam when your MV dropped. I listened to the song, and, well, the rest was history, I guess?”

Donghyuck’s eyes are wide as saucers. “You’ve been a fan since  _ Chrysanthemum  _ dropped?”

“Yes? It was a really good song, um - it helped me to calm down while I was stressing over my exams and projects, so I must’ve had it on loop a lot for a week or so.” Mark remembers that time, when only the sound of Donghyuck’s honey-like voice was the only thing that could get him to relax enough to sleep, when stress and anxiety loomed too high for him to handle. “It’s… not a stretch to say that the song helped me through some tough times.”

“Wow,” Donghyuck says, eyes suspiciously shiny. “That’s… that’s so great to hear, hyung. That means so much to me, you don’t even know.” He laughs, sounding oddly like he’s trying to clear his throat. “I don’t really have a favorite song of mine, but  _ Chrysanthemum  _ is special to me, for a lot of reasons. I wrote the lyrics, for one thing, and I played the piano backing track in the first chorus, too."

"Really?" Mark asks, and Donghyuck nods.

" _ Chrysanthemum _ wasn't even supposed to be the title track, or my actual debut song. It was supposed to be  _ Don'tcha _ , and while I really love that song, and I'm so happy about how popular it is and how many people like it, I don't have the same… attachment to it, you know? It isn't, like, my baby the way  _ Chrysanthemum _ is."

"You're a baby," Yangyang automatically interjects, breaking up Donghyuck's sentence with pinching and giggling.

"So are you," Donghyuck retorts, squishing Yangyang's cheeks together. "Widdle baby Yangyangie," he coos. "Yangyangie knows the choreo to  _ Don'tcha _ by heart, don't you, Yangyangie?"

It's only his deeply-rooted sense of self-preservation that prevents Mark from revealing that he, too, knows the choreo of  _ Don'tcha  _ by heart. He still has a scar on his knee from the time he knocked into a table trying to do Donghyuck's signature spin kick move. "Can I ask how  _ Chrysanthemum _ became the title track then?" he asks instead, trying to will the painfully embarrassing memory away.

"Heenim suggested making it the title track," Donghyuck says, seemingly smiling fondly at the memory. "Heenim - ah, Kim Heechul, the founder of KHC. He actually scouted me personally, all the way in Jeju, can you believe that?"

"Oh? I haven't heard this story," Yangyang says, cuddling Donghyuck. Even Sicheng seems to perk up from his spot at the counter. "Story time!"

Donghyuck laughs. "The short of it is that Heenim scouted me after he heard me singing while he was eating at my friend's family restaurant. The slightly longer story is that he spent about two weeks pleading with my parents to let me come back to Seoul with him to become a trainee, and it all came to a head when I ran away from home and found him at the inn he was staying at."

"You ran away from home?" Mark repeats, astonished. "How old were you then?"

"Twelve," Donghyuck says, smiling sheepishly. "Heenim was so shocked when he saw me waiting for him at the lobby. I'd heard him say his name the first time he talked to my mother, so I asked for him at the receptionist. She didn't know what to do with me, tracking dirt all over the carpeting and demanding to see 'Mr. Kim Heechul.'"

Yangyang and Mark laugh in unison. "What did he do when he saw you?"

"He scolded me and took me right home to my parents! Mom was close to hysterics, because she thought I'd been kidnapped - she thought  _ Heenim _ kidnapped me! When she saw him with me I thought she was going to try and kill him with her slipper!"

"It took some time for her to calm down, and I had to 'fess up and explain that  _ I  _ ran away." He traces patterns on the table, following the texture of the wood. "Mom was furious - I could practically see my life flashing before my eyes, and I think I actually started crying? But Heenim apologized on my behalf and told my mom it was all his fault, and that I shouldn't be held accountable. He was trying to console me the whole time."

"So how did your mom end up allowing you to become a trainee, then?" Yangyang wonders.

"Mom asked me if I really, really wanted to go with Heenim, and I said yes. I don't think I fully understood what I was getting into, but I knew that he was offering me a path where I could sing and perform for as many people as I wanted to. And more than that, I trusted him. There was something about Heenim that instantly told me he was a good person."

"Eventually, mom told me that even if I wanted to, I was too young for her to allow to go to Seoul on my own, and Heenim had to back down on that point." Mark imagines a twelve-year old Donghyuck, teary-eyed and pout on full display as his mother told him he was too young to be chasing after the stars. "So she said that if both of us were really serious about it, then Heenim could come back for me when I was fifteen. And that's what ended up happening - I came to Seoul after I turned fifteen, trained for a little over three years, and debuted."

"And you became the cutest soloist South Korea has ever seen," Yangyang says, pinching Donghyuck's cheek again. It's cute how Yangyang babies him considering he's the younger of the two, but Donghyuck laps it all up. He beams at his friend, until his smile slowly becomes a little wistful.

"I miss Mom, though," Donghyuck sighs, leaning on Yangyang's shoulder. "I miss Dad and my little brother, and my friends back at Jeju. I haven't been back there since coming to Seoul - never had the time. I - I miss them a lot. I really do."

-

**Full Sun☀ @official_haechan ** hello to you Sunflowers! I'm having a nice cup of coffee this cloudy morning ☁ what do you guys like to do on mornings like this?

**hellohaechan @sunnylip ** its nice to take a walk bc its not too hot outside! ^_^

_ [6 replies | 3 retweets | 228 likes] _

**Hyuck's moles @starryhyuck ** i like to find shapes in the clouds!! ☁☁☁

_ [4 replies | 201 likes] _

**Alice ☀ FULLSUN @alicearts ** i like to draw bc the natural light is so nice 💛💛

_ [4 replies | 154 likes] _

_ [View more replies...] _

-

**fullsundial ** missing haechan hours [open]

Liked by  **@ldhyuck** and  **20,677 others**

**@ldhyuck ** bruhv did u rly hv to post this photoset and make haechan nation weep  _ [344 likes] _

**@starhy_ck ** nation's soloist goes on hiatus and 7 billion sunflowers wither away  _ [203 likes] _

**@sunshinesun ** oh no bby haechannie looks so smol sad hours [open]  _ [121 likes] _

_ [View all 5,324 comments] _

-

"Hey, Mark, are you busy?" Guanheng calls, emerging from the back room. Mark looks up from his phone, having been scrolling through his Instagram feed. Fanmade content for Haechan is spiking recently, probably to fill the gap left by his hiatus. He’d been in the middle of saving a bunch of fanart to a folder when Guanheng called for him. “Nah, why?”

Guanheng, decked out in a slightly stained gingham apron, holds up a yellow mug. “Hyuckie told me he was coming down to get a cup of hot chocolate about twenty minutes ago, but he hasn't come. I don’t know where Xiaojun is, and I’m cooking something right now, so can you take this up to him before it gets cold?”

Mark stares at him. “You want me to go up to Donghyuck’s apartment and bring him hot chocolate?” he asks, incredulous. “Are you serious? Do you know how many things could go wrong in the process?”

“What could go wrong?” Guanheng scoffs. “You’re literally just going to knock on his door and hand him a drink. If he invites you in, like a normal, polite person, you go in and act like a normal, polite person. Unless you’re telling me you can’t even do that?”

"What if… I walk into him when he opens the door and I spill hot chocolate all over him?" Mark raises, pointing triumphantly at Guanheng. "Or what if I  _ don't _ spill the hot chocolate, but I  _ do _ walk into him and knock him to the ground, making his injury worse? Check and mate, Guanheng."

"Oh my god, just take the damn hot chocolate up to him before my dinner burns," Guanheng gripes, setting the mug down in front of Mark. "He probably got distracted watching videos, so he'll probably forget to invite you in, anyways."

After being unceremoniously shooed out, Mark climbs the stairs to the apartments uneasily, carrying the mug with him. There's a separate entrance to the apartments, right beside the cafe, but it's even more tucked away. Mark wonders how anybody could find this place if they didn't know where to look - it really is a private location.

Guanheng, Xiaojun, and Donghyuck live on the second floor, the first floor of the apartments. The latter lives right across from the other two, in Unit 4, or so he's been informed. The little sun sticker on one corner of the door confirms it.

Nervously, Mark knocks on the door. "Donghyuck?" he calls. "It's Mark. I have your hot chocolate here."

There's a beat of silence before he hears a reply. "Hyung?" he hears from inside. "Mark-hyung?" He frowns - why does Donghyuck sound panicked?

"Donghyuck-ah? Is something wrong?"

"Hyung, please come in, I - " he breaks off, and Mark thinks he hears him swear, " - the door's unlocked, just come in, please."

Trepidation and worry war inside Mark's head for a brief moment, but he opens the door anyway. He's greeted by a well-lit apartment, all warm beige and cream and yellow colors. A clock shaped like a sunflower is the first thing that catches his eye, until his gaze trails over to the living room area, where Donghyuck is sprawled out on the floor beside a low table.

"Donghyuck!" Mark panics, not knowing what to do, but he thankfully has the good sense to set the mug down on a table before rushing to the idol. "What happened?"

"Fell," Donghyuck says, laughing weakly and with no humor. "Tried to get to the remote without using my crutches and I slipped."

Mark winces as phantom pain erupts all over his limbs in empathy. He lets Donghyuck clutch onto him, carefully helping him up. "Did you hit your leg? Does it hurt? Should we be moving it now?"

"It's fine," Donghyuck says, grimacing in a way that says it's not. "I tried to turn my body so that I'd fall on my left leg. It worked, but I bumped my knee on the coffee table. Crutches were too far away, so I couldn't get up."

"Oh, Donghyuck-ah," Mark sighs. Slowly, gently, he helps him to the couch, Donghyuck leaning heavily onto him the entire time. If he's clinging to Mark a little too closely, the older man makes no mention of it. "It's a good thing Guanheng sent me up here. He was worried when you didn't come down to get your drink."

"Guanheng-hyung and Xiaojun-hyung worry about me a lot," Donghyuck mumbles. He wraps both his arms around Mark's shoulders, practically hugging him. "I guess -  _ ow, fuck _ \- I guess it's a good thing they do, huh?"

Mark wonders how long Donghyuck would have lain on the floor, if Guanheng hadn't checked on him or sent Mark up. He shudders to imagine the younger boy lying on the floor in pain for an hour, or forcing himself to get up and crawl to his crutches. He thanks whatever mysterious forces worked together to ensure it wouldn't happen.

Even after Mark sets him down on the sofa, Donghyuck refuses to let go. "Donghyuck, are you okay?" Mark asks as he sits down beside him, worried. Normally, he'd be flustered by their proximity, but the pained expression on Donghyuck's face sends any thoughts of embarrassment flying from his brain.

"No," Donghyuck admits, voice tiny. He clings to the front of Mark's shirt, burying his face into his shoulder. "But I will be. Just - if it's not too much to ask, c-can you stay here for a bit, hyung? Until I feel better?"

"I don't mind," Mark immediately says, stroking his hair soothingly. "Are you sure you don't want me to call Guanheng? Or Xiaojun?"

Donghyuck shakes his head, his hair tickling Mark's chin. "No," he says, inhaling deeply. Deciding not to push him, Mark instead helps him adjust to a more comfortable position, inadvertently pulling him closer.

It's easy to lose track of time, after that. Mark mostly stares at the television, which is set to some home shopping channel. His eyes wander around the cozy apartment, picking up on random things - a pink hoodie on a table, a bunch of Michael Jackson posters on the wall, a dark wooden bookshelf stuffed to the brim with all kinds of books. Donghyuck's a warm, soft presence that's taken up residence in his arms, breathing softly and shifting slightly every now and then. When they'd started, his heartbeat had been fast, pounding, probably due to panic and pain. Now, it's slowed to a normal pace, and Mark can barely feel it.

"Does it still hurt?" he whispers, stroking the younger's hair. He can see black roots starting to grow in. He feels Donghyuck soften, feels him sag heavily onto him.

"It always hurts," Donghyuck says, voice muffled against his shirt. "But I'm getting better."

"That's good." Silence takes over again. The female host on TV insists that they absolutely must buy the washing machine onscreen, that it's the solution to all their domestic problems. Mark wonders absently if Guanheng will notice he hasn't come back down, if he'll come up to check on Donghyuck himself.

Eventually, after a long time, Donghyuck slowly detaches himself from Mark. There are faint tear tracks on his face, which he hastily wipes away. "Sorry," he says, looking embarrassed. "I kinda panicked when I fell, so I - " He breaks off, unsure of what to say.

Mark doesn't give him time to dwell on it. "It's okay, Donghyuck," he says comfortingly. He bravely swipes his thumb under the idol's eye, wiping the slight dampness away. "I'm just glad I came up when I did."

Donghyuck opens his mouth, as if to say something, but he's interrupted by a soft knock at the door. Mark nearly jumps out of his skin, instinctively holding onto Donghyuck's shoulders to steady himself. "Hyuckie?" he hears someone call. It sounds like Xiaojun. "Mark? Are you guys in there?"

Mark and Donghyuck meet eyes, and it's only then that the latter is made aware of their proximity. "Um, I - I'll go get the door," he stammers, but the door is already opening before he can get up.

"Guanheng made dinner for - oh." Xiaojun blinks at their position, bodies turned towards each other with Donghyuck halfway on Mark's lap. "Um - am I interrupting something?"

"No! No, no, no, no!" Mark hastily says, face burning with embarrassment. "Um, I - I was just - we were just - "

"Mark-hyung was helping me," Donghyuck says. The way he says it sounds meaningful, different. "I fell on the floor and couldn't get up, and he found me after Guanheng-hyung sent him up here."

Xiaojun's expression immediately changes. "Are you okay? Did you hurt yourself?" He walks up to them, kneeling in front of the sofa to check Donghyuck's leg.

"I'm fine, hyung," Donghyuck tries to tell him, wriggling his foot. "I made it so I didn't fall on the fracture. I was stupid and didn't use my crutches, it won't happen again."

"You don't know that," Xiaojun sighs, looking up once he decides there's nothing alarming about Donghyuck's leg. "You're lucky Guanheng sent Mark up. What would you have done if no one had come to check on you? You have to be more careful, okay?"

Donghyuck nods, leaning away from Mark. Xiaojun sighs again as he gets up, but he allows the boy to sneak his arms around his waist and pull him in for a hug. "None of that, now, you know I'm not mad at you. Come on, Guanheng made kimchi pancakes, you can eat over at our place."

Donghyuck's face immediately brightens up, and he looks around, his gaze landing on his crutches. "Can you…" he starts, but Mark's already stood up to retrieve them for him. "Here," he says, handing them over.

"Thank you," Donghyuck says, smiling gratefully. "Will you eat with us, hyung?"

Xiaojun turns to look at him expectantly, as well, but Mark fidgets under their gazes. "Um… I wish I could, really, but I'm expecting a call from work some time tonight." It's not even a lie, not really, since Mr. Choi  _ did _ say he had something to discuss with Mark, but seeing the dawning disappointment on Donghyuck's face unsettles him. There's just something wholly nerve wracking about the idea of sitting down to dinner with the three of them. "Next time, though?"

"Okay," Donghyuck says, pouting. Carefully, he stands up with the crutches, Xiaojun assisting him. He leans closely on the older man, almost a little closer than he actually needs to. "But I'm holding you to that!"

"Sure, sure," Mark says, ruffling Donghyuck's hair. Yes. Hair. Ruffling. That's. That's safer territory. That's secure. There's nothing wrong with ruffling his dongsaeng's hair like that, especially not when it makes him smile like so. "Your hot chocolate got cold, though, so I guess Guanheng'll have to make you another one."

"Oh, by the way, Mark, Guanheng brought up your stuff from the cafe. We've locked up, so you can just swing by our apartment and grab it on your way out," Xiaojun says, walking slowly to keep beside Donghyuck as they all head for the door. "Are you sure we can't convince you to stay for dinner?"

"I really can't tonight," Mark says apologetically. "I'll be sure to stay another time."

They make their way across the hall to Guanheng and Xiaojun's apartment. The latter opens the door for them. "Oh, hey," he greets them, stepping aside to let them in. Their apartment has the same beige walls, but it's a lot less  _ yellow _ than Donghyuck's. It's just as cozy, though. "Is something wrong? Did something happen?"

"I fell," Donghyuck says, before anybody answers him. "Mark-hyung found me on the floor after you sent him up."

" _ What? _ " Guanheng nearly drops the spatula he's holding, his face taking on the same expression as Xiaojun's earlier. "Are you okay? Did you hurt yourself?"

"He's fine, I checked," Xiaojun says, stepping to the side. Donghyuck pouts slightly at the loss of contact, but stands steadily on his own with the crutches. "He's lucky you sent Mark up."

"Yeah, I noticed he hadn't come down for his hot chocolate after he pestered me to make him some," Guanheng says, rubbing his temples. "Jesus. You sure you're okay, Hyuckie?"

"Yes, hyung," Donghyuck says, drawing himself to his full height. "I'm completely a-okay - Mark-hyung really saved me."

"And to think you were panicking about bringing Hyuckie his hot chocolate," Guanheng says, side-eyeing Mark, who laughs sheepishly. "Are you gonna stay for dinner?"

"Can't, I'm expecting a call from the boss later tonight," Mark says, rubbing the back of his neck. "Next time, though."

"Suit yourself," Guanheng shrugs, returning to the kitchen, where plates from the cafe are spread out on the counter. Donghyuck waddles happily after him. "I brought your bag up from the cafe, it's on the couch."

"Let me walk you out," Xiaojun offers. Mark shoots him a strange look, but the other man gazes pointedly at him as if daring him to refuse. Mark, unused to seeing Xiaojun look so stern, says nothing.

"See you, hyung!" Donghyuck waves, already seated at the kitchen counter. Mark waves back, and Xiaojun closes the door behind them.

In the sudden silence of the hall, Mark senses an awkward tension starting to build. "Um, I should get going, then," Mark starts, motioning towards the exit, but Xiaojun grabs him lightly by the arm and pulls him away from their unit.

As soon as they're out of earshot, he asks, "Did Donghyuck really fall? Were you really just helping him?" Mark flushes at the urgent, almost accusatory tone in Xiaojun’s voice, so far removed from his usually placid demeanor. “Yes! I swear, I came up with his hot chocolate, and then I knocked, and then he called for me and told me the door was unlocked and when I came in, I found him lying on the floor.”

Xiaojun’s expression softens, if only slightly. “I believe you,” he says eventually, and Mark’s chest loosens in relief. “Did Hyuckie ask you to comfort him, afterwards?”

Mark blinks. “Yeah, he did.”

“And did you?”

“I let him hug me on the couch, yeah. That’s why we were in that position when you came in.” Just saying the words makes Mark remember how closely he had held Donghyuck, how small and soft he was in his arms.

“Oh, good,” Xiaojun says to Mark’s surprise, sagging in relief. “I was worried you’d be the kind of guy who doesn’t like hugs or stuff like that.”

“Well, I mean, typically I’m not really a touchy person, but Donghyuck looked like he was really scared, so I wasn’t going to refuse him a hug or anything,” Mark says defensively.

“No, I mean - never mind.” For a moment, Xiaojun chews his lips, eyes occasionally darting back to the apartment behind them. Finally, he sighs. “Look, I’m pretty sure you need to go, so I’ll explain some other time, but if Hyuckie asks to hug you, or even if he doesn’t ask and he just does, can you indulge him? Just let him without asking him anything?”

Mark’s about to ask why, but the look on Xiaojun’s face leaves no room for argument. “Okay, I guess,” he says, instead, and nothing else.

Xiaojun smiles wanly at him. “Thank you. Have a safe trip home, Mark,” he says, waving lightly. Mark watches him go back to the apartment, Donghyuck's laughter drifting out of the warm space.

-

**fullsundial ** 171125 Haechan MAMA Performance #haechan #throwback #mama2017

Liked by  **@starhy_ck ** and  **90,230 others**

**@starhy_ck ** THE SUPERIOR HAECHAN OUTFIT AAAAAAAA  _ [319 likes] _

**@hyuuu_ck ** H(aechan)(s)OLO WAS MADE FOR LEE DONGHYUCK TO WEAR  _ [296 likes] _

**@kiyowohaechannie ** THIS POPPED UP ON MY FEED AND I LITERALLY DIED THANK YOU FULLSUNDIAL FOR KILLING ME  _ [254 likes] _

_ [View all 11,322 comments] _

-

“Man, it’s like you’re never free anymore,” Yukhei pouts, peering over the cubicle wall as Mark packs up his laptop. Mark smiles apologetically, having just declined Yukhei’s offer for a round of drinks at the nearby karaoke bar. “Did you get a girlfriend or something? I know for a fact that you aren’t busy with fansite stuff.”

“I don’t have a girlfriend,” Mark says, picking up his windbreaker from the back of his chair.

“A boyfriend, then,” Yukhei persists, looking miffed when Mark only laughs. “I don’t know, man! I have no idea what you’re getting up to these days. You’re looking pretty cheerful considering that Haechan’s on indefinite hiatus.”

“It’s unsettling,” Mina agrees, sidling up to Yukhei on her way to the exit. “I was expecting him to be mopey the whole time that Haechan was recovering.”

“Do - Haechan is resting and recovering, so what’s the point in me being sad?” Mark says evasively. “It’s not like it’s going to do anyone any good if I just act depressed the whole time.”

“Now who are you and what have you done with Mark ‘I’m Haechan’s Biggest Sunflower’ Lee?” Mina asks teasingly. “Yukhei’s right. It’s suspicious, you’re being too cheerful. You’re seeing someone, aren’t you?”

“Why won’t you let me be cheerful?” Mark whines, shrugging his laptop bag on. “Do you really prefer when I'm crying on my sofa with a tub of ice cream?"

"Oh Jesus, you got that bad? Never mind, then," Mina says, shuddering. "You're going to have to clear up your schedule one of these nights though, Mr. Lead Software Designer. Congrats on closing the Hansung job."

"Ahh, thanks, thanks." The job that Mina's referring to is a year-long endeavor with Hansung Apparel, one of Mark's first big projects. He'd wrapped up with the client just last night, finally putting an end to one of the most stressful but enjoyable contracts he's handled in this company. Mr. Choi had been  _ very _ pleased to hear the Hansung Group representative's effusively positive feedback. So pleased, in fact, that he's started hinting at some vacation time for Mark if his current job goes just as well.

Yukhei brightens up. "Dude, you gotta clear up your schedule this Friday, okay? You remembered, right?"

Mark scoffs at him. "Of course I did, what do you take me for? That date's all cleared out and reserved for you, dude." Friday, January 25th, happens to be Yukhei's birthday. Ever since Yukhei's birthday last year, they'd made a pact to spend each other's birthdays hanging out and doing whatever the hell they wanted without worrying about repercussions. The other rule was that everything the birthday celebrant wanted, the other one had to pay for. Last year, to be petty, Mark had demanded for Yukhei to buy them a whole case of expensive beer. It ended up being a loss for both of them, and they spent the rest of the night drowning out the acrid aftertaste with cheap booze from the convenience store. He can only wonder what Yukhei has come up with to get back at him this year.

Mina smiles fondly at them. "Boys," is all she says, shaking her head as she starts heading out.

As they wait in front of the elevator, Mark gets a sudden flash of a  _ brilliant _ idea. "Hey Yukhei, what's your favorite Haechan album again?" he asks casually.

Yukhei immediately brightens. "Hmm, that's a good question!" he says, rubbing his chin and assuming an exaggeratedly thoughtful expression. "How do I choose?"

The elevator opens, and they all pile in. "Mine's still  _ Full Sun _ ," Mina offers, and Mark nods in agreement. If he really thought about it,  _ Full Sun _ , Haechan's debut album, is still his favorite. Mostly out of nostalgia, but there's something special about the twelve songs on that album that he'd played on repeat for hours on end, back when they were the only songs of Haechan that the fans had.

"Ahhh,  _ Full Sun _ 's probably my favorite, too," Yukhei finally says. It takes him the whole elevator ride to decide, but he beams as he says it. " _ My First and Last _ is in that album! I still can't believe his debut album is a hundred percent composed of absolute hits. What a king! Why'd you ask, by the way?"

"I was thinking of posting a photoset of his album covers," Mark says, thinking quickly, then realizing that it isn't a bad idea for him to do so. "Every fansite is just recycling content right now, but the fans love it. They really miss D - Haechan a lot."

"Ugh, so do I," Yukhei groans. "I wonder what he's doing while he's resting? He seems cheerful from his Twitter updates, but you never really know, I guess."

"I guess so," Mark agrees, shrugging. It's not like he can tell Yukhei he can check in on Haechan personally. "Anyway, Friday, yeah? I might not come in tomorrow, but I'll definitely be in then."

"Sweet!" Yukhei waves, as does Mina. "Get home safe, dude!"

"You, too!" The minute they leave, Mark checks his watch. It's only a few minutes past seven, which is perfect.

On his way to the cafe, Mark swings by a popular music store. The latest EXO album is in full display at the window, posters decorating the space around it. He takes a moment to admire Byun Baekhyun's eyeliner in the poster, but that's not what he's here for.

The bored-looking teenage girl at the counter doesn't even look up at him when he passes by, but she brightens somewhat when he places  _ Full Sun _ in front of her. "Oh,  _ Full Sun _ ," she says, smiling as she scans the barcode on the album. "I was thirteen when this came out. My older sister couldn't stop listening to it."

"Really? That's nice," Mark says, chuckling. A vague image of a young girl listening to  _ Don'tcha  _ pops in his head. "It's my favorite album."

"Mine's probably  _ Iridescent _ , but  _ Full Sun  _ is pretty special." She wraps the album up in a small yellow plastic bag. "Thank you for your purchase," she says automatically, bowing him out of the store. He leaves, feeling oddly cheerful.

When he arrives at the cafe, there's a couple of grandmas nursing steaming cups of chamomile tea in one of the booths, but no Donghyuck. Xiaojun is at the counter, blinking sleepily at the cake display.

"Oh, hi, Mark," Xiaojun greets him, waving. "Thought you might not show up today."

"I went in to work, had some things to take care of. Is Donghyuck around?" he asks, looking about the cafe.

"Upstairs, yeah. I think he's watching Guanheng type on his laptop. Do you need him for something?"

"Yeah, I wanted to ask something. Okay if I go up?"

"Be my guest," Xiaojun says, waving him off, but before he can turn to exit the cafe, he remembers something.

"Oh - that thing that you said, the other night," Mark begins hesitantly. "When you saw me out your apartment… will you explain it now? When I get back?"

Xiaojun frowns, brows creasing. "Right, I probably should," he sighs. "You want a macchiato or something? I'll have it done when you come back."

"Sure, if it's not too much trouble."

"You're paying for it, anyways," Xiaojun grins, getting up from the table. "Hyuckie's probably at our place, try there, first."

Donghyuck does in fact end up being in Xiaojin and Guanheng's apartment, lying down on a couch. Mark spots Guanheng over by the kitchen counter, typing furiously away at a laptop. "I guess glasses really do make people look smart," he comments lightly, as Donghyuck pushes himself up to wave at him.

"Hello, Mark," Guanheng says, not sparing him a glance. "Did you just come from work? Why are you here?"

"I need to talk to Donghyuck."

"He's all yours. In fact, you know what, can you take him back to his apartment? He's been whining about the air freshener smelling weird all afternoon and I'm about to throw this laptop at him."

"You wouldn't," Donghyuck gasps loudly, placing his hand on his chest in offense. "That laptop is the most important thing in your whole entire life."

"Fair point, but it doesn't change the fact that I've had it up to here with your voice. Come back later," Guanheng says flatly.

Donghyuck wobbles his way to Mark at the door, whining loudly the whole time. "This is it! This is it, hyung! I'm leaving, I'm really doing it!"

"Yes, yes."

Donghyuck pushes Mark out the apartment, then slams the door behind them as best as he can. Ignoring Mark's shocked look, he waits a few seconds before opening the door again. "How was that?" he asks, beaming. "Dramatic enough?"

"Completely," Guanheng deadpans. "Five stars. Everybody on this floor probably heard you."

Chuckling, Donghyuck closes the door quietly, then walks over to his own place. "Guanheng-hyung's a lot more fun when he isn't chasing deadlines," he informs Mark, pushing the door open.

"Believe me, I know," Mark says with a chuckle of his own. When he'd first met Guanheng at the cafe several months ago, the other man had been energetic and full of snark, not quite unlike Donghyuck himself. Mark sympathizes with him - graduate school must be hell.

"Anyway, you said you needed to talk to me? What about?" Carefully, Donghyuck plops himself down on his couch. Mark notices that all his actions are a bit more steady, more deliberate than before. He must be trying to be more cautious.

"I have a favor to ask," Mark confesses, making to sit on the armchair, but Donghyuck pouts and pats the seat beside him. With only a brief moment of hesitation, Mark sits beside him, the younger boy immediately leaning on his side.

"Is this okay?" Donghyuck asks, voice casual, but it's softer than his usual tone. Mark, remembering Xiaojun's words, wordlessly wraps his arm around him, and is rewarded by a small but genuine smile. "What's the favor?"

"It's my friend's birthday this Friday - he's a really, really big fan of yours, too. His favorite album is  _ Full Sun _ , so I bought him a copy, which I have here. I mean, he already has his own copy, but I was wondering if you could sign the one that I bought?"

"Of course!" Donghyuck grins. "What's his name?"

"Wong Yukhei," Mark answers, relieved. He'd been slightly worried that he would be taking advantage of Donghyuck's friendship with the request. "He's my coworker, although he works in a different department," he explains, pulling out the CD case.

"That's nice," Donghyuck says, a little wistfully, taking the album. "I spend time with a lot of the same people at work, but I don't really get to make friends with them. And my juniors at the company are all too shy to approach me even if some of them are my age or older."

"I mean, they know you as Haechan, after all, and not Donghyuck," Mark reasons, rubbing his shoulder comfortingly. "Isn't there anyone in the company you're close to?"

"Heenim, maybe," Donghyuck says, but for some reason, his face falls as he says it. "And my manager, Doyoung-hyung. He nags worse than a mother and gets on my case about everything, but I'm glad to have him around."

"That's nice," Mark says, echoing Donghyuck. "It's good that you at least have someone to look after you while you're busy being the nation's soloist."

"That's not a real thing," Donghyuck says, but at least it puts a smile on his face. "You said your friend's birthday was on Friday, right? How are you guys celebrating?"

Mark notes the quick subject change, but decides not to comment. "Oh man, I have no idea. We have this tradition where on our birthdays, the other person has to pay for everything that the celebrant wants. Of course, we don't go overboard, but who knows what Yukhei will make me do after what I made him do last year?"

"What happened?" Donghyuck asks, looking enraptured. Mark digresses into a long, twisting story about his birthday last year, all the stupid stuff he made Yukhei buy and do before ending with the ill-fated pack of shitty, expensive beer. Donghyuck's a great audience - he laughs and asks questions in all the right places, but Mark can't help but feel that something's weighing him down.

At the end of the story, Mark remembers that Xiaojun's probably still waiting for him downstairs. As he trails off, Donghyuck yawns.

"Tired? It's pretty early." It's not even eight, but Donghyuck seems tuckered out.

"Yeah, I… I've been sleepy lately. I can't fall asleep right away at night. It's my darn leg - it keeps bothering me," he says, shifting his leg around. Mark feels there might be something more to it, but decides not to pry. Instead, he pulls him in a little closer, ruffling his hair. Physical contact seems to comfort him more than any words can, anyway. "Maybe you should try to rest early tonight," Mark suggests. Who knows, some peace and quiet might do you good. You might fall asleep sooner."

"Right..." Donghyuck mumbles. "You're probably right. I'll try to get some sleep."

"Eat dinner first, though." Mark rests his chin on Donghyuck's head. The Mark of a few days ago would probably have combusted on the spot if he were to do this, but there's something wholly disarming about the way Donghyuck gives and accepts affection. That, and the fact that Xiaojun's words still ring solidly in his head.

The contact seems to soothe Donghyuck who inhales deeply. "Yeah. I'll probably go and raid Guanheng-hyung's pantry in a bit. There's no pulling him away from his laptop once he's gotten in the zone. Are you going?"

"I'm just gonna have a quick chat with Xiaojun, then I'm heading home, yeah. I have some work to finish up so that I'm totally free for Yukhei's birthday on Friday."

Donghyuck's eyes suddenly light up. "You said he's a fan of mine, right?"

Mark nods. "Yeah, a big one. He's even got little sunflower stickers on his laptop, it's adorable."

"Take him here to the cafe. I'll give him the signed album myself."

" _ What? _ " Mark's jaw falls open. "That's too risky, you can't do that!"

"Why not? I'm sure he can keep a secret. You haven't told anyone at all that I live here, right?" Mark shakes his head emphatically, and Donghyuck grins. "He's your friend, so I trust him, and I trust you. Besides, what're you gonna do if he asks you where and how you got a signed album, with his name, no less?"

"Well, you don't  _ have _ to sign it in his name," Mark protests weakly, but he knows how happy it would make Yukhei to get a personal message from Donghyuck, much more if he actually got to meet him. "Look, let's not be hasty, okay? I'm sure Yukhei can be trusted, but I'd feel better if we thought it over first."

" _ Fine _ ," Donghyuck says, whiny. "I'll talk to Guanheng-hyung about it. I'm sure they'll be onboard with it!"

Mark isn't, considering how protective the two seem over Donghyuck, but he doesn't say anything more. Donghyuck eventually waves him out of his apartment with a yawn, promising that he'll try to get some shut-eye. When he gets downstairs, Xiaojun is waiting with a warm caramel macchiato, as promised, and there are no more customers in the cafe.

"I've always wondered, do you drink coffee at night to stay up for work, or does it not affect your sleep at all anymore?" Xiaojun asks, watching as Mark happily downs his coffee.

"I think caffeine stopped affecting my body normally in college," Mark confesses, setting the cup down. "It kinda still gives me an energy boost when I drink it, but I fall dead asleep at night whether I drank a whole tank of espresso or not."

Xiaojun shudders. "Don't joke about that, please. You don't know how many times Guanheng has threatened to drink espresso straight from the machine back when he was just starting grad school."

Mark chuckles, but the topic of sleep prompts him to recall Donghyuck's dilemma. "By the way, Donghyuck was kind of sleepy when I went up, even though it's only eight. He says he can't sleep well, that his leg's bothering him."

At that, Xiaojun's brow creases in worry. "I thought so," he sighs, crossing his arms. "I was worried he was hiding it from me and Guanheng."

"What is he hiding? Is this what you're supposed to explain to me?"

Xiaojun nods, exhaling with a frustrated noise through his nose. "See, Hyuckie, he's… well, in a nutshell, Hyuckie's  _ lonely _ . More than that, he's severely touch-starved, but either he doesn't realize it, or he refuses to acknowledge it."

Mark sits up straight, frowning as Xiaojun continues. "Hyuckie - well, I'm sure you've noticed it, how touchy he is with us, even Sicheng-ge and Yangyangie." Mark nods, face serious. "He's been living across from us for a year now, but it's only been a couple of months since he became this comfortable with us."

"When he first moved here, Kun-ge asked us to look after him, because he knew him through a common friend of theirs in Jeju. Hyuckie was still busy with promotions when he moved in, so we didn't see him all that much, but we tried to have him over when we could so that he could at least have a nice meal before he was carted off to his next schedule."

"Donghyuck was nothing like he is now. When we first started talking to him, he was polite, cheerful, sure, but there was this fear about him. Afraid to talk to us, afraid to inconvenience us, and most of all afraid to touch us."  _ That _ is hard for Mark to imagine, a Donghyuck afraid to get close to people. He supposes, sadly, that there's a lot he still doesn't know about him.

"He was isolated a lot, in his company. I don't think it's an exaggeration to say that he's really only close to his boss, Kim Heechul, and his manager, Kim Doyoung. Doyoung-ssi is even his boss's nephew - Heechul-ssi wanted to make sure that Donghyuck's manager was someone competent, someone he personally trusted. Of course, this only made it seem more like Heechul-ssi was favoring Donghyuck above everyone else, and that didn't make him too popular with the other trainees."

"Did they… did they bully him?" Mark asks, half afraid of the answer.

"No, they didn't," Xiaojun says, before frowning. "Or maybe they did, and Hyuck just hasn't told us about it. In any case, I think they're all too afraid to incur Heechul-ssi's wrath to do anything obvious. But they weren't friendly or welcoming of him, that's for sure."

"Things must have gotten worse after it was announced that Donghyuck would debut as a soloist. According to him, he was supposed to debut in NCT Seoul, but then Heechul-ssi decided that he would go solo." NCT Seoul, Mark knows, is a boy group from KHC that debuted a year after Donghyuck. They're quite popular, even garnering a sizeable international fanbase, but Haechan is still the biggest act signed under the company. More importantly, he's the first one to ever debut under the label.

Mark imagines what it was like - Donghyuck, training amongst other boys like him, already singled out by Kim Heechul as  _ special _ . Then, chosen to debut as a soloist, and debuting a year earlier, even - Mark understands how the other trainees might become jealous, might come to resent Donghyuck.

"Donghyuck's an affectionate boy. He's wired to receive love, to return it. He probably grew up in an environment with supportive, loving people - then he came to Seoul and suddenly he's all alone. Heechul-ssi and Doyoung-ssi, no matter how they care for him, couldn't give him the comfort he needs. It's hard for him - to always be surrounded by people, so many people, but to not get the contact that he craves. Stylists, makeup artists, staff - they all have contact with him, but I'm sure they maintain a professional distance from him, physically and emotionally."

Xiaojun gets a faraway look in his eyes, before smiling slightly. "Do you know, the first time Hyuckie let Guanheng hug him, both of them started crying? It was so funny - it took months, but he eventually opened up to us. Even Sicheng-ge wanted to comfort him, and he  _ hates _ skinship. Donghyuck just has that effect on everyone."

Then he sighs. "There's a whole lot more to this story, but it's for Hyuckie to tell you. To be honest, there's still a lot he's keeping from us - he probably thinks he's being a bother. Case in point, him having trouble sleeping? It's probably because he can't fall asleep alone in his apartment, not because of his leg. He's usually so tired from performing that he doesn't have much trouble falling asleep, and when it got really bad, he'd stay over at our place. Now, with his injury and hiatus, he's probably too wired to fall asleep. And he's somehow got it into his head that he shouldn't sleep over at our because it'd be a bother."

Mark swallows, looking at his empty cup. Suddenly, all the times he's seen Donghyuck clinging to Xiaojun or Guanheng or the other employees is cast in a new light. Donghyuck's off-hand, simple question of "Is this okay?" makes him sad now, makes him ache with empathy.

"You're different, Mark. You're someone new to Hyuckie, someone he doesn't have any baggage with. You're someone he might be more willing to reach out to and rely on, especially since you're someone he's taken note of before you even met. I'm sure he's still ashamed that we've seen him cry and break down, even though it's nothing for him to be embarrassed by." Xiaojun looks at him, a grave expression on his face.

"I hope you know that every time Hyuckie hugs or clings to you, he's giving you more than just his affection. He's giving you his  _ trust _ , and I don't think I have to tell you how significant that is, how precious."

-

**Full Sun☀ @official_haechan ** hello Sunflowers! Tonight's a chilly night in Seoul ;u; I hope everyone is keeping warm!

_ [1.2k replies | 21k retweets | 28.2k likes] _

**haechan's left leg @hyuckster06 ** wear lots of layers, Haechannie! It's cold outside brrr

_ [12 replies | 230 likes] _

**juliet @sunjulie ** we're having hotpot rn!!! hope u have something to warm u up toooooo!!!

_ [1 reply | 177 likes] _

**hello hyuck! @sunnies ** i keep warm by practicing dontcha till i start sweating LOL

_ [3 replies | 34 retweets | 302 likes] _

_ [View more replies…] _

-

"An ox-bone soup restaurant?" Yukhei says blankly, as they walk up to the alley. The chilly night air bites at their skin. "Mark, did you seriously tell me to dress up nicely for an ox-bone soup restaurant? On my  _ birthday _ ? After you made me cancel my whole itinerary for tonight? After you made me buy you a whole pack of shitty overpriced beer last year?"

Mark rolls his eyes. "Oh ye of little faith," he quips, pulling a pouting Yukhei by the arm into the alley between the restaurant and the bookstore. His friend's suspicious look only deepens when they stop in front of the cafe. "Trust me when I say this is the best surprise in the fucking history of surprises. Now go inside!"

Yukhei frowns doubtfully at him as he opens the door. "I don't know what you're planning, Mark Lee, but I swear to God if this is one of your pranks then I'm seriously gonna have to rethink our broship - "

"Surprise!"

Yukhei whips around to see Donghyuck, dressed in a warm knit sweater and comfortable shorts, reminiscent of the outfit he'd been wearing when Mark first met him at the cafe. He wouldn't put it past the idol to have dressed that way on purpose. The small cake that Mark had bought, plus other food that he may or may not have paid Guanheng to make is spread out on one of the tables in the middle of the room. Guanheng and Xiaojun themselves are standing in the corner, biting their lips and looking simultaneously worried and amused.

"Hi there, Yukhei-hyung!" Donghyuck greets him cheerfully. Mark notes that he's already holding the signed album, which has been decorated with a cute yellow bow. "Happy birthday! Mark-hyung tells me you like my music, so I thought it'd be nice if I - "

He's unceremoniously interrupted by Yukhei toppling over to the floor in a dead faint.

" _ Sweet Jesus! _ " Mark screams, rushing forward to catch Yukhei but getting knocked to the ground by his sheer dead weight. "Ow, fuck!"

"Oh, shit!" Donghyuck makes to rush forward and help, but he wobbles on his crutches and decides, thankfully, to stay still. He looks over to Guanheng and Xiaojun, both of whom are doubled over with laughter, clutching at the counter.

"Oh, oh fuck - " Guanheng gasps, steadying himself as he wipes a tear from his eye. "Oh fuck, Xiaojun, get a hold of yourself, haha - we gotta,  _ fuck _ , we gotta help him - "

Xiaojun crumples helplessly to the floor, shaking with the force of his laughter. Looking at them both, Donghyuck has to fight back a chuckle of his own, but he's distracted by Mark's frantic shuffling as he tries to revive his friend.

"Yukhei! Oh my god, Yukhei, wake up!" Mark forgets every first aid tactic he's learned in the mandatory office safety seminar and cradles his friend's head in his lap. "Yukhei!"

Slowly, gradually, and a touch dramatically, Yukhei stirs. "Mark?" he asks, focusing on the face above him. "What happened?"

"You fucking fainted!" Mark says, too relieved and panicked at the same time to handle his friend gently. "You scared me, asshole!"

"Dream," Yukhei murmurs, and Mark can't tell if he's genuinely woozy or just faking. "I had a dream. You brought me to a cafe in the middle of an alley on my birthday and Haechan was there."

Donghyuck limps over to them, leaning over Yukhei. "It wasn't a dream, hyung," he says, only twenty percent worried at this point. Guanheng and Xiaojun's raucous laughter are really getting to him, making it hard to fight off a smile. "Hi there."

"Oh, I'm still dreaming," Yukhei says, blinking his eyes open. "That's weird. This isn't how my Haechan dreams usually go."

Donghyuck raises one eyebrow inquiringly, to the horror of Mark, who knows exactly how those Haechan dreams usually go. "Oh? And how do they go, exactly?"

"YUKHEI YOU AREN'T DREAMING," Mark says loudly, before Yukhei can open his mouth. He blinks, registering Donghyuck and Mark's faces above him.

"Haechan?" he asks in a small voice.

"The one and only," Donghyuck says, smiling. "Although you can call me Donghyuck for tonight."

-

**Full Sun☀ @official_haechan ** Sunflowers! 🌻🌻🌻 What's your favorite kind of cake? Mine is caramel cheesecake ~

_ [9.2k replies | 11.1k retweets | 18.3k likes] _

**loving haechan hours [open] @hyucksflower** TWO haechan tweets in one day???? your honor the simulation,,,,,,

_ [20 replies | 344 retweets | 1.3k likes] _

**hello hyuck! @sunnies ** truly haechan is feeding sunflower nation,,,,,,, 😔✊

_ [11 replies | 299 retweets | 927 likes] _

**Hyuck's moles @starryhyuck ** guys what does it say abt me if i cry over haechan tweeting abt cake LIKE GOSH WHY IS HE SO BABIE

_ [26 replies | 1.2k retweets | 1.5k likes] _

_ [View more replies…] _

-

Mark doesn't quite know how it happens, but several bottles of soju later, he's lying plastered on one of the booths while Yukhei gives Donghyuck a piggy back ride around the cafe.

Donghyuck clings onto Yukhei, who even in his inebriated state is very,  _ very _ careful with the way he handles Donghyuck's leg. The idol screams in childlike delight when Yukhei starts leaping around the cafe, yelling loud enough to be heard outside.

"Guanheng, me too," Xiaojun whines. He pokes his roommate on the arm, shaking his shoulder incessantly "Carry me like that, too."

" _ No _ ," Guanheng says thickly. Somewhere after Yukhei's fifth shot of soju and Donghyuck's seventh (for some godforsaken reason, he's got the highest tolerance out of all of them), Xiaojun and Guanheng had finally caved, joining in on the celebration. "You've been sneaking cake out of the display all week, you're heavy."

"Did you just call Xiaojun fat?" Mark says, wildly amused. He's still nursing his current shot of soju, contemplating whether to down it or not. His tolerance is pretty shit for anything stronger than beer, and he still has to make sure both Yukhei and he get home safely. Though, judging from the way things are looking, he might have to ask to stay over.

" _ You're _ fat!" Xiaojun retorts to no one in particular, blinking hazily between Mark and Guanheng. All three of them turn around at the sound of Donghyuck shrieking with laughter, Yukhei carrying him all over before depositing him gently beside their booth.

"You're so light, you're like a baby!" Yukhei informs him, beaming. He'd had the same expression on his face when Donghyuck serenaded him with a rendition of the birthday song earlier, complete with Mariah Carey-esque vocal runs.

"Donghyuck is baby," Xiaojun agrees, reaching up to pinch Donghyuck's cheek. "Are you having fun?"

Donghyuck laughs, high and clear, and swats at the other man's hand. "This is Yukhei-hyung's birthday party! Ask him, not me."

"Don't care about him," Xiaojun slurs. “Don’t know who he is.”

Yukhei drapes his arms over Donghyuck’s shoulders from behind, who immediately grasps them, squeezing fondly. “This is the best birthday ever,” he sighs contentedly, leaning down to perch his chin on top of Donghyuck’s head. “Mark Lee, you’re seriously the best. The bestest bro ever.” Mark just grins, raising his shot glass in reply.

Later, Guanheng sobers up enough to refuse to allow Mark and Yukhei to go home in their drunken states. Donghyuck immediately pounces on the suggestion, sneaking his arms around Mark’s waist as Xiaojun and Guanheng start to clean up. “We can have a sleepover!” he says brightly. His voice is as clear and happy as ever, and even without his crutches, he’s barely swaying. Mark is in awe of his alcohol tolerance, considering he drank almost as much as Yukhei did. “You and Yukhei-hyung can stay with me.”

Mark laughs as Yukhei carries Donghyuck up the stairs, the idol singing  _ Drunken Truth  _ at the top of his lungs and perfectly in tune. Guanheng shushes him half-heartedly, but smiles when he hears Xiaojun humming along. The two employees accompany them to settle into Donghyuck’s apartment.

“You guys’ll be okay for tonight?” Guanheng asks, as Yukhei gently sets Donghyuck down on the sofa. Mark, who carried his crutches up, hands them over to him.

“Yep!” Donghyuck says, popping the  _ p _ . He makes grabby hands for Yukhei, who beams and sits beside him, a large body for Donghyuck to immediately lean on. It’s cute how Yukhei had slowly gotten over his initial awe at meeting the idol, skirting shyly around him unlike the extrovert that Mark knew him to be. Donghyuck, for his part, seemed delighted to find someone as bright and friendly as him, and more importantly, open to his displays of affection.

“Alright, I guess it’s goodnight, then. It was really good to meet you, Yukhei, happy birthday again,” Guanheng says, extending his hand for Yukhei to shake. Xiaojun is practically draped over him, nodding off as they retire to their own unit.

Yukhei insists on carrying Donghyuck around the apartment as they all get ready for bed, drinking water to stave off the inevitable hangovers and even while they brush their teeth. Donghyuck allows the attention happily, occasionally peeking over his shoulder to grace Mark with a small, soft smile.

Despite his enthusiastic claims of wanting to talk until the morning, Yukhei passes out the second his head hits the pillow, having set up mattresses on the floor for him and Mark to sleep on. Mark himself is quickly on the verge of dozing off, but he gets distracted by shuffling on the bed somewhere above him. A beat later, he feels the thin mattress move as Donghyuck carefully lowers himself onto it.

“Hi,” Donghyuck whispers, prompting Mark to turn on his side to face him.

Something warm blossoms in Mark’s chest at the soft, open expression on the younger boy’s face. “Hi,” he whispers back, reaching out to rub Donghyuck’s shoulder gently. He brightens, and inches closer until he can tuck himself under Mark’s chin and push his face into the elder’s chest.

Mark feels his warm breath tickle his skin for a few moments, before Donghyuck speaks. “I know it’s Yukhei-hyung’s birthday,” he begins. He tentatively wraps an arm around Mark’s waist, and after a brief moment’s hesitation, Mark drapes his own arm over him, pulling him closer. “But - thank you for bringing him. I had so much fun.”

“I’m glad you got along with him so well,” Mark says quietly, rubbing Donghyuck’s back. “Yukhei’s my best friend.”

He swears that he feels the shape of Donghyuck’s smile through the thin material of his shirt. “He… reminds me a lot of my best friends,” he says softly.

“Best friends?” Mark echoes. A second later, he realizes. “Back at Jeju?”

“Mm-hmm. We used to play around like that a lot, especially when we were kids.” He hesitates for a bit, before continuing. “Jeno liked to pick us up randomly and carry us around, especially if he thought we were walking too slowly. Nana gives the  _ best _ hugs in the whole world, they’re so cozy. And Injunnie would always throw himself at me without warning. He didn’t care if it meant he’d fall, too.”

_ Jeno, Nana, Injunnie _ , Mark repeats in his head. There’s something painfully fond about the way their names sound in Donghyuck’s voice, the vowels rounded off beautifully by the love in his tone. “You must miss them a lot, huh?”

Donghyuck laughs. “So  _ much _ ,” he says thickly, hiding his face further into Mark’s chest. The elder knows better than to say anything about the sudden, almost imperceptible dampness on his shirt. A question rises to the tip of his tongue, something he’s been wondering about for so long.

“Donghyuck-ah,” he murmurs, curling protectively over the smaller boy. “Why haven’t you gone back to Jeju?”

Donghyuck lets out a shaky exhale against his chest, and for a minute or two, Mark is convinced that he won’t answer. But eventually, he looks up at him, eyes already mostly dry. “I’m scared to go back,” he whispers, ducking his head almost immediately after.

Mark frowns, confused. “Scared? Why?”

Donghyuck shakes his head, saying nothing more. Mark waits and waits, but it quickly becomes evident to him that the other boy won’t elaborate. Sighing, he lets it go, focusing instead on stroking Donghyuck’s back until his breathing evens out, until his grip on Mark’s shirt loosens, until the lights behind his eyelids fade out. The wisps of an impossible wish cling to his mind until he drifts into a deep slumber.

-

**<mark.l@sj-kor.org>**

**INBOX (27 unread)**

**Kim Sohye ** <sohye.k@sj-kor.org>

**Jan 26, 2019, ** 9:55 AM

[re: logo layout]

**Kang Mina ** <mina.k@sj-kor.org>

**Jan 26, 2019** , 8:12 AM

[re: re: re: re: re: the fucking intern]

**Choi Siwon ** <siwon.c@sj-kor.org>

**Jan 26, 2019** , 6:20 AM

[re: Paid Vacation Leave]

_ [View more…] _

-

_ Are you free _ , Donghyuck asks on Sunday morning, messaging Mark’s fansite account privately on Twitter. It wasn’t his main account,  _ Full Sun _ \- it was a locked, private account that had only sixty-four followers. Mark of course had had his suspicions, until the account sent him several messages in rapid succession, mentioning the cafe, Guanheng, and Xiaojun by name and eventually whining about Mark ignoring his messages.

Luckily, Mark doesn’t have to work on Sundays, so he bundles up and makes his way to the cafe. Yangyang greets him brightly from the counter, before informing him that Donghyuck’s upstairs in his apartment. When he arrives, pushing open the empty door, Donghyuck is curled up on the couch, watching TV.

“Hyung!” Donghyuck scrambles to make room for him on the sofa, grinning widely. “KBS is airing a tour of KHC Ent that they filmed last December!”

Mark laughs. “I know,” he says, amused. He’d been planning to watch it, in fact, before he received the message notifications on Twitter. “Is that what you called me here for? So we can watch it together?”

Donghyuck nods, already leaning on his shoulder. “Guanheng-hyung is out at the library, and Xiaojun-hyung is visiting his parents.” His face falls just the slightest bit, so imperceptible that Mark would’ve missed it if not for their proximity. His expression quickly brightens again, though and he continues. “Sunday’s when the cafe usually gets more than one customer, so I didn’t call up Sicheng-hyung or Yangyangie. And that’s why you’re here!”

Mark chuckles. “I’m glad that I’m fifth on your list, it’s such a huge honor,” he teases.

Donghyuck swats at his shoulder. “You know that’s not what I meant!” he says, pouting. Mark resists the urge to deepen that pout by squishing his cheeks together.

They pass the time easily, sitting quietly together. The show is a good watch, Donghyuck reacting enthusiastically whenever he’s onscreen, even though it’s nothing new to him at this point. Several members of NCT Seoul make appearances at some point, although they’re never filmed together with Donghyuck. Mark watches discreetly for any change in the boy’s expression, but his smile doesn’t falter even when those members are onscreen. In fact, he looks almost fond.

“Did you know I was supposed to debut in NCT Seoul?” he says suddenly, gaze still focused on the screen. Surprised, Mark nods his head. “I read some articles that mentioned it,” he says carefully, not mentioning that it was Xiaojun who’d told him.

Donghyuck’s smile grows a little sad. Almost wistful. “I trained with them up until about four months before my debut. That’s when Heenim told me that I would debut as a soloist instead, and soon.” He laces his fingers together on his lap, nuzzling into Mark’s side. “I wonder, what would it have been like if I debuted with them like planned?”

Mark looks at him, Donghyuck’s face turned resolutely forward to the television set. He reaches out to cover Donghyuck’s linked hands, grasping his fingers gently. “I think,” he begins, watching as Donghyuck turns to face him. “I think that, even if you had debuted with them, I would still be a Sunflower.”

He doesn’t know what he expects - for Donghyuck to laugh teasingly at him, pinch him, or maybe even get a little flustered. What Mark doesn’t expect is for Donghyuck’s expression to fall, causing him to draw away from him.

“Donghyuck?” Mark asks, anxiety suddenly coursing through him. “What’s wrong? Did I say something wrong?”

The boy shakes his head furiously. “No, I - ” he breaks off, looking down. Mark reaches out to take his wrist in his hand, relieved when he doesn’t reject his gesture.

“Sorry,” Donghyuck says, still not meeting his gaze. “It’s, um, not what you said. I mean, technically it is what you said but what you said wasn’t bad, I’m just stupid and I - ”

“Donghyuck-ah,” Mark interrupts him gently, lowering his head so he can look up at Donghyuck’s face. “It’s okay, shh. I’m sorry I upset you.”

“It’s not you, hyung, I  _ swear _ , I’m just - ”

Mark cuts him off again, this time pulling him into a hug. Despite himself, Donghyuck leans into it, tucking his chin in the crook of Mark’s neck. “You don’t have to explain yourself to me,” Mark says gently. He’s still worried and confused, but it all pales in significance after seeing Donghyuck’s distressed face. “Not unless you want to.”

“I - ” Again, Donghyuck breaks off, but he lets out a sigh after. “Can you turn off the TV?”

Mark obliges, fumbling around for the remote until he finds it. The sudden silence that envelops them is thick and heavy, punctuated only by the sounds of cars passing in the street outside.

He waits.

He waits for Donghyuck to lean back, to grip his shoulders and look at him head on. He waits for the conflict behind the boy’s eyes to settle, his shoulders slumping in resignation. He waits.

Donghyuck’s gaze falters, looking down at his lap. “If I had debuted in NCT Seoul,” he starts. “Maybe I would still be close to them. Maybe they would talk to me, call me Donghyuck-ah like they used to, instead of having to bow and call me  _ sunbae _ .”

He withdraws his hands and laces them together, tightly. “If I debuted with them, maybe there would never be any Sunflowers. Just NCTzens. I wouldn’t be front and center all the time, singing and dancing alone. I’d be performing with my friends, not back-up dancers who don’t talk to me outside of practice.”

“Maybe we wouldn’t have been as successful as my debut. But we’d get there, eventually. We’d have all the time in the world, with Heenim supporting us every step of the way. Maybe, if things had turned out that way, everything would be different.”

He finally looks up at Mark, who can feel his heart cracking in a dozen different places. “Maybe I would have had time to go back to my friends and family in Jeju, then. Instead of having to tell them every year, on my birthday, on Chuseok, on Christmas, that I can’t go home. Every year, until I’m too ashamed to face them, because I could never make time for them.”

He inhales shakily, covering his face. “I haven’t seen them in six years, hyung,” he says, his voice small. “My baby brother, Jisungie - he was just twelve years old when I left. He was fresh out of primary school. I haven’t seen him in person in six years and I’m so scared that he won’t know me anymore. That  _ I _ won’t know him anymore. I call, and we text, and they always tell me when they watch me perform on TV or buy my new album - but it’s not the same, hyung. How could it be the same?”

“Donghyuck-ah,” Mark says, his voice breaking.

“And Heenim - he worked so hard to make sure my debut would be successful.” Donghyuck finally lowers his hands, but he still doesn’t look up. “He took out loans, called in favors with people he knew in the industry, just so I could have a decent production. And he apologized to me - apologized that he couldn’t give me a big debut, or proper promotions, or a fancy music video.”

His face is miserable. “He believed in me, sacrificed so much for me - I couldn’t leave or take breaks, not until I made everything that he did worth it. If I had to do it as a soloist, then so be it.”

Mark can only remain silent, his heart aching for him in empathy. What could he possibly say, anyway? “Six years go by so fast, hyung,” Donghyuck whispers. “When you live schedule to schedule, when you live stage to stage, album to album - the days slip by so fast. And now that I’m injured, it’s like everything’s just come to a standstill, and I realize how much of my family and friends’ lives I’ve missed out on.”

“Donghyuck-ah,” Mark says again, taking Donghyuck’s wrists in his hands and pulling him forward, closer. “I know you’re scared. I can’t possibly understand how much this hurts you. But…” he trails off, biting his lip. “Don’t you think this is your chance? To go back? To finally see them after all this time?”

To his dismay, Donghyuck shakes his head firmly. “It’s not that simple, hyung,” he says. “Even if I wasn’t like this, even if I wasn’t too scared to face my own family, the logistics of the trip are difficult. Even more so because of my injury. Heenim won’t allow me to go on my own, but of course he can’t accompany me, and Doyoung-hyung is helping manage NCT Seoul since they’re promoting in Japan right now. Heenim will never allow someone he doesn’t personally know or trust to accompany me.”

Trust.

( _ “You’re different, Mark.” _ )

“It’s just how it is, hyung,” Donghyuck says, closing his eyes sadly. “Even now that I have all the time in the world, I still can’t see them.”

( _ “You're someone he might be more willing to reach out to and rely on, especially since you're someone he's taken note of before you even met.” _ )

“Donghyuck,” Mark says softly, prompting Donghyuck to open his eyes and look at him again. He lifts a hand to swipe his thumb under the boy’s eye, wiping away the dampness that he’s fighting so hard to hide. Even now, Donghyuck leans into his touch, seeking physical comfort.

( _ “I hope you know that every time Hyuckie hugs or clings to you, he's giving you more than just his affection.” _ )

“I can,” Mark says. “I can do it for you.”

Confused, Donghyuck frowns. “What do you mean, hyung?”

( _ “He's giving you his  _ trust _ , and I don't think I have to tell you how significant that is, how precious.” _ )

“I’m saying,” Mark says, swallowing to dispel the hammering of his heart. “Let me bring you to Jeju.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I promised over 20k words, but this tapers off at ~19k. If I had kept in the rest, the chapter would've reached 30k, and that's pretty insane! I updated the chapter count - there will now be four.
> 
> Thanks to Ivy for reading through this and live reacting! Good luck with acads, neither of us are allowed to die.
> 
> -
> 
> **Notes:**  
\- I gave names to the seven members of NCT Seoul: Han Taeju (leader, KR), Bang Jaebum (KR), Jung Jinsoo (KR), Park Taeho (KR), Shirota Minoru (JP), Wang Sen (CN), and Zhao Yue (CN). They're still largely unimportant, I just assigned names for consistency and for reference to myself.  
\- Some people asked me, but the social media page breaks are largely not related to the plot, unlike Mark's inbox log in the previous chapter. They're mostly reflective of the current event in the story, and they're not necessarily chronological, either. They're just there for added effect!  
\- I love Lee Donghyuck very much he deserves the world and everything in it.  
\- Thank you for your patience! I hope you enjoy this update.

**NCT Seoul Japan Tour a Smashing Success**

www.koreaboo.com/news/nct-seoul-japan-tour-a-smashing-success - 11:09 a.m. January 27, 2019

Popular boy group NCT Seoul make headlines with their wildly successful Japan tour, their first official venture into the international scene. Stadiums and arenas were filled with neon green lights at their concert in Saitama, the first of seven stops in their tour. Their exciting and breathtaking stages captivated their Japanese fanbase, which is sure to bode well for the upcoming release of their much-awaited Japanese album,  _ NE0N _ .

Do you wish NCT Seoul could come to your city, too? Tweet us your thoughts @koreaboo!

**me and dating are now Taeju @taekwonju ** listen im going to straightup yeet myself to tokyo if it means i get to see han taeju dance to boss live

_ [22 replies | 1.2k retweets | 3.4k likes] _

**nct SOUL @un_knees ** we stan legends,,,,,,, selling out stadiums on their 1st tour,,,,, literally when will ur faves ever,,,,,,

_ [18 replies | 1k retweets | 2.8k likes] _

**mintae au (check pinned!) @minoruouji ** whatevr u do do NOT think abt minoru being back in saitama for the first time since he became a trainee do NOT

_ [78 replies | 3.5k retweets | 4.3k likes] _

_ [View more replies…] _

-

“You don't know what you're saying, hyung," Donghyuck says, his hand flying up to grip Mark's wrist. His voice sounds oddly choked. "I - why would you even say that?"

"It's crazy, I know. Stupid," Mark says, swallowing nervously. "But it's a possibility. My… my boss is going to offer me a couple of weeks of paid vacation time, because I recently closed a huge job for the company. That, and I'm almost done with a current project. If you could get your boss's approval, there isn't anything stopping me from accompanying you."

"But why?" Donghyuck asks. "Why would you even offer in the first place? We've known each other for all of two weeks, hyung - even if you've been a fan of mine for longer, that's too much to ask of you, too much for you to offer."

What can Mark say? Donghyuck's right - it's a big thing that he's offering, bordering on presumptuous and definitely crossing several boundaries. Mark can't explain the deep feeling rooted in him that wants to give this to Donghyuck - wants to do something good for the boy that's made him so happy for three years.

_ No, _ Mark realizes.  _ That's wrong _ . He doesn't want to do this for Haechan, the idol he's admired for three years. He doesn't want to do this for the boy he sees onstage, the boy he sees onscreen, the boy he used to see through the lens of his camera.

He wants to do this for the boy he's holding right now, sitting in front of him with his bare face and messy hair. He wants to do it for the boy who adores yellow, who sings everywhere he goes and who clings onto the people he loves with all his might. He wants to do it for the boy he's gotten to know and care for over the course of two weeks - for Donghyuck.

"I want to do this for you," Mark says quietly, sincerely. "If you'd let me. I - it may be presumptuous of me to say this, but I care about you, Donghyuck-ah. You're important to me, and not just because I'm a fan of yours or whatever. I think we're past that, aren't we?"

Donghyuck looks at him uncertainly, eyes searching his face. He still hasn't let go of Mark's wrist, but he hasn't pushed him away, either, and Mark's willing to take that as a good sign.

"Guanheng, Xiaojun, heck, even Sicheng and Yangyang would probably do the same if they were in my position," Mark continues. "But you've never thought of asking them, because you… you think it would be a burden. Is that right?"

Donghyuck closes his eyes and inhales deeply, trembling. "It's never been an option," is what he says, almost too softly for Mark to hear.

"But it is, now," Mark says. "I'm not saying you should go for it. I will never, ever make you do something you don't want to. But… I want you to know that it's a possibility now. That it can actually happen. And I can and  _ want _ to do this for you, Donghyuck. Just know that."

Donghyuck opens his eyes to look at him, and it tears Mark apart to see the tears pooling at the corners of his eyes, no doubt having been pushed down since earlier, since he started talking about NCT Seoul. "I think… I think that you should go for now," Donghyuck says carefully. "I think that we both have a lot of things to think about."

Mark tries not to let his face fall when he hears those words, but he can't deny them. "Alright," he says, pulling away reluctantly. "But please, think it over for real, okay? Don't dismiss it just because you think it's a bother to me."

"I've got that," Donghyuck says a little sharply, but his face is immediately flooded with guilt. "Sorry, I - "

"Donghyuck, it's okay," Mark cuts him off. "I just dropped something really big on you. I'll leave. Just…" He pauses, unsure of what to say in the face of Donghyuck's conflict, and decides there’s really nothing he  _ can _ say. "Never mind. I'll be going now.”

He’s at the door when he’s stopped by Donghyuck softly calling out, “Hyung.” Mark turns around, not daring to hope.

“Whatever happens… thank you for offering,” Donghyuck says, voice small. “I know you mean well.”

Mark smiles. “You’re welcome,” he says, and means it.  _ You’re welcome to ask anything of me,  _ he thinks, _ and I’m afraid of what that means _ .

-

**NCT Seoul @khc_nctseoul ** #MINORU #SAITAMA #NE0CITY

_ [4.5k replies | 28.4k retweets | 50k likes] _

**mintae au (check pinned!) @minoruouji ** THE PRINCE OF SAITAMA HIMSELF IS SERVING US THE *LOOKS* THANK YOU NE0CITY FOR BLESSING US WITH THIS BEAUTY

_ [20 replies | 3.4k retweets \ 4.2k likes] _

**arisa @jinsooloist ** I’M SCREAMING WHO ALLOWED SHIROTA MINORU TO GO OUT LOOKING LIKE A GREEK GOD I DEMAND ANSWERS

_ [9 replies | 2.9k retweets | 3.8k likes] _

**taeho’s side ho @mintaeking ** no offense but minoru and taeho taking a selfie together this tour would actually suck sksksksksksksk

_ [10 replies | 2k retweets |2.5k likes] _

_ [View more replies…] _

-

In a rare display of fortitude, Mark does  _ not  _ avoid going to the cafe. No, instead of trying to distance himself from Donghyuck after their less-than-ideal conversation, Mark makes an effort to maintain a sense of normality, as if nothing has happened. The thing is, it seems like he’s the only one trying.

“He’s avoiding you,” Guanheng says bluntly, when Mark dares to ask where Donghyuck is. It’s the third night since their talk, and it’s the third night in a row that he’s sat in the cafe without the idol ever making an appearance. “I know you meant well with what you said, and you’re absolutely right, if I were in your spot, I would do the exact same thing, but… you kind of rattled him, you know? He’s unsettled by the fact that visiting Jeju is a possibility now, and I’m pretty sure he’s trying to think it over as rationally as he can.”

“He’ll probably crack any day now,” Xiaojun pipes up from where he’s cleaning the glass of the cake display. Guanheng shoots him a suspicious look when he catches the other man staring at a piece of strawberry shortcake, and Xiaojun sheepishly leans away. “He had a really long phone call with someone last night - it’s just a wild guess, but I’m betting it was Heechul-ssi.”

“He told you guys about our conversation?” Mark asks, surprised that Xiaojun and Guanheng know about it at all.

“He tells us everything,” Xiaojun says proudly, at the same time that Guanheng says “We had to wheedle it out of him.” They look at each other, pointedly raising an eyebrow at the other.

“Well, he tells  _ me _ everything, anyway,” Xiaojun says loftily. “Bet he wouldn’t have told you if I hadn’t shown up and helped you convince him.”

“This is the weirdest thing I’ve ever seen you get competitive over,” Guanheng remarks, looking at him with amusement. “Anyway, Mark, don’t be too torn up about this. It’s normal for Hyuckie to shut himself away if he wants to think something over really carefully. At worst, he’ll decline your offer and… well, no one’s going to end up happy if he never visits, but I guess you’ll have at least tried.”

Mark frowns, tracing the rim of his coffee cup. “Has Donghyuck ever told you guys anything about his life in Jeju?” he asks them, curious. Donghyuck had only mentioned his three best friends and his brother to Mark - it’s highly likely the two of them would know more.

Xiaojun and Guanheng look at each other. “He told us some things,” Guanheng says, shrugging. “He’s told us about his family at some point, including his little brother, and sometimes he’d share a funny story about something his one of his best friends did. Oh, and he’s definitely told us about his dance and voice lessons - he started practicing as soon as Heechul-ssi went back to Seoul.”

“His dance teacher is a man named Ten,” Xiaojun offers. “And he’s the one who’s friends with Kun-ge. He hasn’t really told us much, beyond that.”

“I see,” Mark says, somewhat discomfited. “Have you guys ever… I don’t know, tried to persuade Donghyuck to go back to Jeju at some point?”

Xiaojun’s face darkens unexpectedly. “Only once,” he says, and nothing more. There’s no need for him to explain. Guanheng sighs heavily, standing up to go to the back room.

Mark nods once, allowing silence to take over. He wonders now, if he did the right thing in offering to accompany Donghyuck to Jeju. In the heat of the moment, it seemed like the logical thing to do, but thinking back on it now, he can’t help but feel that he was definitely crossing some boundaries. Why  _ would _ Donghyuck go to his hometown with someone he just met two weeks ago? Why would he listen to him, when he’s clearly refused point-blank when Xiaojun and Guanheng tried to convince him?

“Hey, Mark,” Xiaojun eventually says, snapping him out of his daze. “Whatever happens… thank you for offering that to Donghyuck,” he says, not unkindly, and Mark gets goosebumps as he remembers Donghyuck saying almost those exact words. “I know you’re worried about the effect this is having on him, but it's honestly been a long time coming. Even if he doesn’t accept now, it’s at least been put into his head - I’m sure it’s just another step in the right direction.”

Mark swallows, nodding once. He doesn’t want to show how much relief Xiaojun’s words had given him - he’d been worrying the whole time that maybe he’d just ruined things with Donghyuck instead of improving anything.

He closes his eyes and inhales, the familiar scent of coffee overpowering his senses pleasantly. The ball is in Donghyuck’s court now, as they say, and Mark will wait for his move for as long as he needs to.

He looks at his watch and sighs. Donghyuck’s probably not showing up tonight, either. He shakes his head, trying to snap out of his disappointment. Yukhei’s been looking at him with worried eyes the past couple of days, probably noticing how something’s been weighing on his mind. Still, even if Yukhei knows Donghyuck now, it’s not something he can share with him.

He’s just about to put away his things and leave when the sudden muffled sound of commotion sounds out behind the back door, drawing both his and Xiaojun’s attention. There’s the sound of people talking over each other, rapidly approaching, getting clearer and clearer the closer the people get.

Guanheng throws the door open and marches in, massaging his temples and looking absolutely exhausted. Donghyuck limps in after him, looking annoyed, and behind them is a man that Mark doesn't know, dressed in all black with a face mask hanging loosely from one ear.

Donghyuck glances in Mark's direction, meeting his gaze, and the older freezes. Before he can open his mouth and say something stupid, though, Donghyuck looks away, storming off to a booth in the corner and crossing his arms.

"Yah, Donghyuck-ah, stop acting like this," the strange man says, leaning on the counter. He looks incredibly familiar, and Mark  _ knows _ he should know him, but his mind is coming up blank. "I thought we've already passed your rebellious teenage years!"

"When was I ever a rebellious teen?" Donghyuck demands, sounding more irritated than Mark has ever seen him. "You're the one who keeps doing whatever you want without thinking!"

The man gasps dramatically, clutching at his chest as if Donghyuck has just physically wounded him. "Did you just talk back to me? Where did my cute sunshine Haechannie go? You used to listen so well to me when you were - "

"Heechul-ssi," Guanheng interrupts, looking and sounding dead inside, and Mark freezes when he hears the name. "With all due respect, can you just do what you came here for? Mark's here, and he probably needs to leave soon."

Heechul, Kim motherfucking Heechul, founder and CEO of KHC Ent, the man behind the meteoric rise of Haechan's solo career, turns to Mark with a pout on his face, the face mask dangling precariously from his ear. "Are you Lee Mark?" he asks, moving closer.

Mark involuntarily leans back as he approaches. "Um, yes?" he answers, terrified.

" _ Fullsundial _ , right?" Heechul follows up, and Mark nods frantically. "Incredible work! I follow you on my private account. You've got real talent with photography, sometimes you honestly capture Hyuckie’s best angles better than our actual staff - "

"Heenim," Donghyick interrupts, a warning in his voice. "Just - please let's get this over with."

Distantly, Mark wishes he'd listened to his gut instinct and stayed home tonight.

-

**fullsundial ** Which Haechan album has your favorite album cover?

Liked by  **@sunshinesun ** and  **92,458 others**

**@sunshinesun ** IRIDESCENT!!!!!1!!  _ [359 likes] _

**@ldhyuck ** IRIDESCENT BABEYYY!!!!  _ [299 likes] _

**@hyuuu_ck ** IRIDESCENT HAD THE RAINBOW MAKEUP OF COURSE IT WINS!!!!!!!!  _ [283 likes] _

_ [View all 5,831 comments] _

-

"So, Mark," Heechul says, lacing his fingers together around a cup of earl gray tea with lemon. Guanheng had given it to him with a dubious look on his face, but said nothing, giving Donghyuck his hot chocolate and refilling Mark's cup. "What are your intentions with my Donghyuckie?"

Mark chokes on his coffee, just barely missing spitting everything out on Heechul's face, which would surely have meant instant death. Beside Heechul, Donghyuck turns to look at his boss with murderous intent, hissing out " _ Heenim _ ," through gritted teeth.

"What? This young and healthy man who's been a fan of yours for three years is suddenly offering to take time off his big and fancy job to take you to Jeju. As your father, I have every right to be nosy," Heechul says, taking a sip of his tea. He grimaces, putting it down. "God, I hate earl gray."

Guanheng wordlessly comes by their booth and plucks the cup from Heechul's hands, replacing it with what seems to be a latte. "Thank you," Heechul says, without missing a beat, and the barista leaves as silently as he came, rolling his eyes.

Mark manages to get over his coughing fit, nervously wiping his mouth with the back of his hand. "Um, I - I don't really have any intentions with Donghyuck, w-whatever that means?" he starts, and Donghyuck's face flushes bright red, looking at him incredulously as if wondering why he's even entertaining the older man's question. "I just… it was clearly important to him, and I was in the position to help, so I thought… I thought I should at the very least offer."

"Ah, but why?" Heechul asks, pointing a teaspoon at Mark. "The way Hyuckie tells me the story, you've known about each other for several years, but only really  _ met _ each other a couple of weeks ago. Even if your boss were giving you the time off, you have to realize that not everyone would offer something as big as this to just anyone."

Mark looks down, watching wisps of steam rise off his coffee. "I won't lie and say that being his fan has nothing to do with it," he says. "There's no denying that Haechan's become a big part of my life, especially as a fansite. As someone who's admired him for almost three years, I kind of want to give him the world."

Donghyuck gapes at him, turning redder if that were even possible. Mark knows because he looks up for a second, promptly returning his gaze to his coffee, ears burning. He'll never be able to continue if he sees Donghyuck's expression. "Um, I - well, um - the thing is, even if I knew him as Haechan first, I don't think I'm doing it for Haechan, per se."

He dares to hazard a glance at Heechul, but the man looks surprisingly serious. "What exactly do you mean?"

"I mean that - I'm not doing this for Haechan, the idol, if that makes sense," Mark continues, swallowing. "I'm doing this for Donghyuck. I'm - well, it may sound presumptuous of me, but I consider him an important friend and dongsaeng, even if I've only known him for such a short time. I - I care about him, and if there's something that he wants, something incredibly important to him that I can help him with, then - I want to do it for him."

He fixes his gaze on his coffee, still untouched, heart threatening to beat out of his chest. This is it. This is how he dies. It's not a particularly illustrious way to go, but Mark supposes there are worse things than spontaneously combusting in your favorite cafe in front of your favorite person.

"Hm - " he hears, then sees a hand tapping in front of him to catch his attention. "If it's any consolation to you, I understand what you're saying," Heechul tells him, flashing him an overly enthusiastic thumbs up. "That being said, do you mind waiting outside for a bit? I'm gonna have to talk very quickly with Hyuckie here, but I still have a few more things to discuss with you."

"Heenim, we can't impose on him like that - "

"This man is literally offering to fly to Jeju with you, Hyuckie, I think he'll be okay with waiting until we finish talking," Heechul cuts him off cheerfully. "Right, Mark?"

"Hyung, you don't have to," Donghyuck insists, but Mark shakes his head. "I don't mind. I'll wait outside."

"Come up to our apartment," Xiaojun suggests. "Hyuckie can call me when they're done."

"Perfect!" Heechul says, clapping his hands together. "This shouldn't take too long. See you in a bit, Mark."

"O-okay." Donghyuck shoots him a look that's a mixture of annoyance and disbelief, but he eventually relents and turns his ire in its full force towards Heechul, who Mark is quickly growing terrified of. He voices as much to Xiaojun as they walk up the stairs to the apartment upstairs, causing the other man to snort.

"You're afraid of Heechul-ssi? That manchild?" Xiaojun says, laughing. "Well, I can understand - Heechul-ssi intentionally puts on a tough appearance when he's in front of strangers or people he doesn't like, but you got only his good side today."

To be fair, Heechul hadn't been hostile or cold with him at all - what Mark means is that he's terrified of how chaotic the man seems to be. Within minutes of meeting him, Mark had been completely bowled over by the man's personality, his absolute command of the room, rivaled only by Donghyuck. The fact that that had been his good side is nothing short of horrifying.

"Anyway, if he was that friendly to you, that's a good sign," Xiaojun continues, entering the apartment. Mark follows in after him. "Heechul-ssi can be genuinely scary, especially on matters regarding Hyuckie. He's not joking when he refers to himself as his father - after six years, he definitely sees Donghyuck as a son at this point."

He laughs suddenly, as if recalling something. "Donghyuck told us a funny story once, about Heechul-ssi and Doyoung-ssi, his nephew. You remember Hyuckie's manager, right?"

Mark nods, and Xiaojun continues. "Well, Donghyuck was sixteen when he met Doyoung-ssi. This was even before Donghyuck had been chosen to be a soloist, mind you, before Doyoung-ssi would be assigned as his manager. Heechul-ssi introduced the two of them and told Doyoung-ssi to protect Hyuckie with his life at all costs."

Mark bursts out laughing, surprised. "Really?"

"Yeah! And apparently when Doyoung-ssi reminded Heechul-ssi that he was literally his own nephew, Heechul-ssi just looked at him and said, 'Yes, and? You vomited on my suit when you were two, plus Hyuckie's a thousand times cuter than you were at this age.'" Xiaojun being able to almost perfectly mimic Heechul's voice makes the whole thing exponentially funnier, causing Mark to double over with laughter. “According to Donghyuck, Heechul even pulled out a whole album of Donghyuck’s baby pictures that he’d somehow wheedled from his mom, just to prove his point. I don’t know who was more shocked between Donghyuck and Doyoung-ssi, but Hyuckie was definitely the angry one.”

“Ah, so their relationship is like that, then? Heechul-ssi really does seem like a doting father instead of a boss,” Mark remarks, his giggles dying down.

“Oh, he’s the worst,” Xiaojun says, grinning. “I know we’ve talked about how it made Donghyuck seem favored among the other trainees, but Heechul-ssi truly adores him. They constantly kept in contact during the three years that Hyuckie was still in Jeju, and when his mother finally let him go to Seoul, Heechul-ssi came back to pick him up personally. There’s probably no other person that Heechul-ssi would dote on like that.”

"I'm sure Heechul-ssi loves him a lot," Mark says fondly. “You did tell me that that’s why he chose Doyoung-ssi as Donghyuck’s manager, after all.” He doesn't know what Doyoung looks like, or what his personality is like, but he can't imagine anyone not being taken with Donghyuck minutes after meeting him. "Have you guys met Doyoung-ssi, as well?"

"Yeah, he and Heechul-ssi came to personally accompany Hyuckie when he first moved in here," Xiaojun says, recalling the memory with a fond smile. "Nothing beats having Doyoung-ssi knock on your door at 1 in the morning and ask if we knew how to assemble an IKEA shelf. Heechul-ssi was right behind him, ready to empty out his wallet and pay Guanheng to build it for them, and I think Donghyuck was just about ready to die of embarrassment.”

“Ah, so Doyoung-ssi’s the grown-up between him and Heechul-ssi, then?” Mark says, just as the door to their apartment opens.

“I resent that,” Heechul says, fake hurt lacing his tone as he marches in dramatically. “I thought you would be better than that, Mark.”

Mark leaps up from his perch on the couch, face flushing up to the roots of his hair. “Heechul-ssi! No, I - sorry, I didn’t mean to - ”

“No worries!” Heechul interrupts him cheerfully. “No offense taken. You  _ are _ however going on my list of people to watch. Who knows what other things you and Xiaojun are talking about behind my back?”

Xiaojun rolls his eyes, unfazed. “So, are you and Hyuckie done talking? Where is he?” he asks, placing a hand on his hip.

“Hyuckie’s downstairs - I thought I’d run up here and deliver the news myself, since he’s still acting like a cranky child,” Heechul informs them. He looks at Mark, pointing at him. “How soon can you get time off from your job?” he demands.

Mark blinks. It’s Wednesday now, and although these kind of things would usually take some time to process, Mr. Choi’s been dangling and discussing the offer for some time now, so it shouldn’t take the same amount of time to get his leave approved. “I could probably get approved to leave by this Friday.”

Heechul claps his hands together. “Fantastic news! You and Donghyuck will be flying out to Jeju on Sunday, on the first flight that I can get you first class tickets on.”

Mark’s mouth falls open. “Sunday? So soon?” His brain skips over the detail of  _ first class _ in favor of focusing on the abruptly narrow timeframe. “But - why? Why the rush?”

“Because, Mark,” Heechul says, grinning. “We need to get you guys there in time for Jisung’s birthday on Tuesday.”

-

**BOSS HEECHUL @kimheenim ** donghyuck-yahhhh  (ᗒᗩᗕ) he’s all grown-up noww (╥﹏╥) he doesn’t want to listen to me anymore (╥_╥)

_ [11.5k replies | 58.4k retweets | 129k likes] _

**Full Sun☀ @official_haechan ** you’re embarrassing me

_ [10.7k replies | 59.2k retweets \ 129.2k likes] _

**haechan's left leg @hyuckster06 ** HELP THIS IS SO FUCKING FUNNY LITERALLY WHY ARE THEY LIKE THIS

_ [230 replies | 5.9k retweets | 6.8k likes] _

**loving haechan hours [open] @hyucksflower ** ladies and gentlemen the nations father and son,,,, sksksksks khc ent proving once again y its superior

_ [11 replies | 4.3k retweets |5.5k likes] _

_ [View more replies…] _

-

“You’re going on vacation? Next week?” Mina says, dropping by Mark’s desk to bring him his usual coffee. He’s just come from Mr. Choi’s office, wrapping up the details for his paid leave. “Damn. I thought you’d be the type of guy never to take a break and have all his vacation days pile up or something.”

“I literally just finished talking with Mr. Choi, how do you already know about this?” Mark asks, taking the coffee. “Also, hey, rude! I like having time off!”

“Literally every reason you have for not showing up to the office is Haechan-related,” Mina says, raising an eyebrow. “And even when you don’t come in, you always manage to submit your quota, even more sometimes, especially when the intern messes up. And now you’re telling me you’re just going to suddenly take time off out of the blue? And right after New Year, of all times?”

It’s not like Mark can tell Mina that he’s technically taking time off for Haechan this time as well, that his little brother’s birthday just so happens to fall on the Lunar New Year this time around. It’s not like Mark can tell her anything about Haechan, period. Even Yukhei can’t be told about the trip, as per Heechul’s extremely emphatic instructions.

(“If you tell anyone about this trip, I will find you and steal your bones,” Heechul warned him, as Mark gathered his stuff and prepared to leave.

He’d been very glad that Donghyuck was still downstairs in the cafe, because it meant that he wasn’t present to witness the way all the blood drained from Mark’s face, leaving him standing on shaking knees. “Steal… my bones?”

“I will steal your bones,” Heechul repeats, voice dropping menacingly. “And make bone quiche out of them.”)

Mark supposes it’s lucky that this year, his parents had decided to spend New Year’s in Canada with the rest of their extended family, instead of flying down like they do every other year. They don’t typically make him fly out on his own to spend the holiday with them, either, because if they did, this trip to Jeju wouldn’t be happening at all. Well, he supposes it’s lucky, depending on what perspective he’s taking. Mark is completely terrified at the prospect of meeting Donghyuck’s family during such an important family holiday, let alone during the first birthday of Jisung’s that Donghyuck would be present for.

Speaking of Jisung’s birthday, Mark has just begged off a night of drinking with Yukhei to help Donghyuck pick out a gift for his brother. Heechul had been appalled at the fact that he and Donghyuck didn’t have each other’s contact numbers and promptly demanded that Mark give him his. Hours after Mark had returned home, he’d received two texts from an unknown number:  _ help me pick something out for jisungie please _ , followed shortly by a sun emoji.

It was more than enough to know.

“Hello? Earth to Mark?” Mina says, waving her hand in front of his face. “Jesus, you’re even more distracted than usual, aren’t you? Are you  _ that _ excited about your little vacation?”

Little wasn’t quite the right word; Mr. Choi would be giving him two full weeks of vacation time. Of course, it would already overlap with New Year’s, but Mark isn’t complaining. He isn’t sure if he’s meant to spend all that time in Jeju with Donghyuck, but it would all depend on Heechul and when - if - he decided to get their return tickets. “Sorry, I kinda zoned out there for a bit,” Mark apologizes. “Since I’m not spending New Year’s with my parents this year, I was wondering what I should do for the two weeks. I was just thinking that it’d be nice to take a trip somewhere.”

“Oh, definitely,” Mina says, nodding thoughtfully. “That’s a good idea. Then you can bring me back something from wherever you’re going.”

“Sure, I’ll bring something back for the whole office,” Mark says, agreeing easily.

“You better bring me back one gift for every time you declined a hangout!” Yukhei says loudly, passing by their work area. A few seconds pass, and he walks by again, not carrying anything new. “My feelings are very hurt and require material compensation!”

“Yes, yes,” Mark says, rolling his eyes. Truth be told, Yukhei had given him a knowing look when he’d declined earlier, no doubt meaning that he already knew Mark was refusing due to a Haechan-related reason. Mark isn’t sure how he feels about both Mina and Yukhei knowing how whipped he is for Haechan - well, Donghyuck. He supposes he gave up any right to pretend otherwise the minute he invested in a high-end camera just to become a fansite master.

Later, as Mark walks towards the cafe, the path well-ingrained into his mind by now, he allows himself to wonder. He’s not exactly sure how choosing a gift for Jisung would go - on the one hand, they definitely couldn’t just walk around in public, especially with Donghyuck’s injury. On the other hand, if they ordered something online, it probably wouldn’t arrive in time for them to receive it, wrap it, and pack it for their trip to Jeju.

Mark pauses mid-step, face abruptly flushing bright red as he stands in front of the entrance to the apartment building.  _ They, their _ . Them shopping together, them trying to order something,  _ their _ trip to Jeju. It’s discomfiting how comfortable Mark has become, thinking of the two of them as a pair, but he supposes it just comes with the territory of indulging Lee Donghyuck and his affection.

When he finally arrives in front of Donghyuck’s apartment, he steels himself, trying to will away the sudden jitters. It’s just Donghyuck, he tells himself - he’s hung out with him a million times (a grand total of maybe ten times). He realizes then that, more than anything, he’s nervous about Donghyuck’s mood right now. The idol had been irritable the whole time with Heechul, and Mark hasn’t seen any indication that his mood has improved aside from his use of the sun emoji. He psychs himself up one more time and forces himself to knock. “Donghyuck-ah?”

The door immediately swings open to reveal Donghyuck, his bare face obscured by a mask. “Hyung, you’re late,” he says, and through the tone of his voice alone, Mark just  _ knows _ he’s pouting underneath the cover.

Mark can’t stop the laughter that bubbles out of his chest at his whining. “Sorry, I came from work,” he says fondly, all his tension dissipating. It’s just Donghyuck, he tells himself again, and this time the thought reassures him.

Donghyuck’s aegyo is truly something else, what with the way he somehow manages to convey his pout through his eyes. “Come on - Kun-hyung’s gonna take us to a store, that’s where we’re gonna pick out the gift.”

“Oh, Kun-ssi will be taking us?” So Mark will finally be able to meet the elusive Kun, the owner of the cafe and the apartment buildings. He’s never met the man - he only has a vague image of him that he’s cobbled together from what he’s heard from Donghyuck and the four employees at the cafe. Based on what he’s gathered, Kun’s some rich, well-to-do man with multiple income generating projects, and probably pretty friendly with Donghyuck, considering they have a mutual friend.

The sleek Mercedes sedan that awaits at the other end of the alley opposite the side that Mark usually enters immediately confirms the rich aspect of Kun’s image. However, the man standing beside it is all friendly smiles and pleasantries, immediately offering his hand for Mark to shake. “Hi, Mark, right? Guanheng and the others have told me about you,” he says brightly.

“Nice to meet you, Kun-ssi. They’ve told me about you as well,” Mark says politely.

“Ah, just call me hyung,” Kun insists, smiling fondly as he extends an arm to wrap around Donghyuck’s shoulders. “I’ve been looking after this one since he moved in, so he feels like a little brother. You’re not that much older than him, right?”

“Mark-hyung is three years older,” Donghyuck says, nuzzling into Kun’s side. “Where are you taking us?”

“To my friend Yuta’s store,” Kun says, remotely unlocking the car so that they all can get it. He gestures for Mark to take the front seat, while Donghyuck busies himself with putting his crutches in the backseat before entering himself. “He owns a department store in Apgujeong, and he promises it’s totally discreet. Tons of idols and actors shop there all the time when they want to blend in with the crowd and not get approached in public.”

“Is this the same Yuta-hyung who keeps sending all those gifts to Sicheng-hyung at the cafe?” Donghyuck asks, leaning forward in between the front seats to poke his head through as Kun pulls away smoothly from the curb. Mark’s never been in a car as fancy as this one, that’s for sure. “Sicheng-hyungie just keeps dumping the gifts at my apartment.”

“The very same,” Kun says, laughing. “I keep telling him that he should just approach Sicheng in person, but he won’t listen to me. He’s too used to communicating with expensive gifts. I wouldn’t be surprised if he breaks down and buys Sicheng a whole car out of desperation.”

Donghyuck laughs softly, returning to his spot in the backseat. “So, Mark,” Kun says, eyes still focused on the road. The buildings around them slowly morph into sleek high-rises, the glitz and sophistication of the Gangnam district incredibly prominent. Mark’s just glad he’s dressed somewhat decently, still in his semi-formal work clothes. “What do you do for a living?”

“Uh, I’m a software designer. I work for Suju Corp.,” Mark says quickly, surprised by the sudden question.

“Ah, Suju! I’m a stockholder there,” Kun says, brightening. “Since you’re a software designer, you’re under Choi Siwon-ssi, right? He and I are good friends.”

“O-oh, really?” Mark tries his best to imagine that - Mr. Choi, though nowhere near old, must be at least two decades older than Kun. He wonders how many other “friends” of similar caliber Kun has, and how many companies he’s got shares in. “Is that where your income comes from? Guanheng mentioned once that you only opened the cafe to use the building, not really to earn any money back.”

“Did he, now?” Kun says, musing. He rounds a corner, driving into the discreet entrance to the parking lot of a rather large department store. A stern-looking guard leans into the driver’s window, but waves them past when Kun pulls out what looks like an ID and shows it to him. “Well, yes, most of my income does come from many strategic investments. Guanheng’s right when he says it doesn’t matter if the cafe earns anything or not, because I really opened it just because I didn’t want the property to go to waste.”

A sharply dressed valet waits outside as they exit, even assisting Donghyuck out of the car. If he recognizes the idol at all, he says nothing of it. "Wow, do all department stores have fancy parking like this?" Donghyuck asks, smiling gratefully at the valet. The man takes the car key from Kun, bowing deeply before driving off.

"Probably not," Kun says, shrugging. "I think Yuta just wanted to be ostentatious."

They enter the department store through a ridiculously secure entrance, and suddenly the scene is more familiar. Mark blinks at the posh interior of the shopping mall, filled with equally posh mall-goers.

"Oh, God - " Donghyuck abruptly hisses, quickly hobbling his way behind Kun. "Stay still and don't move."

"What's wrong?" Kun asks, amused.

Donghyuck doesn't move or say anything for a few moments, even pulling Mark closer to hide himself better from view. "I saw a girl group member pass by," he explains eventually. "You know that meme about Inkigayo sandwiches? She actually got someone to put her phone number in my unwrapped sandwich. I almost choked on the paper! It was so embarrassing!"

Mark  _ does _ choke on his own laughter. "Wait, the Inkigayo sandwich thing is real?" he asks in disbelief.

"Only rookie idols do it, and it's usually just a joke, unless they don't know any better," Donghyuck says, grimacing. "Trust me, idols have plenty of better ways to get each other's numbers."

"Oh? And why would you have any need for those?" Kun teases.

Donghyuck only frowns, face coloring. "None of your business, hyung," he mutters, leading Mark to wonder. KHC Ent isn't one of the companies known for having a dating ban; in fact, a Chinese member of NCT Seoul, Wang Sen, is publicly known to have a long time girlfriend in his hometown.

He looks at Donghyuck, at his pretty face and charming demeanor. Could he have…?

Mark colors in embarrassment, shaking his head. It's definitely none of his business, and definitely not something he should be thinking about. Donghyuck's dating life, if he even has one, is his own business.

"Hyung," Donghyuck says, waving his hand in front of Mark's face. The older man jumps in surprise, focusing on the idol, who's moved closer. "Did you hear what I said?"

"Ah, sorry, I zoned out for a bit," Mark apologizes, embarrassed. "I've been kind of spacey lately."

Donghyuck frowns. "Are you overworking yourself? Sorry, you should probably be resting now," he says, looking guilty.

"No, it's okay, I don't mind coming with you," Mark says quickly, reassuring him with a pat on the head. "I wouldn't have come if I didn't want to."

"Cute," Kun cuts in, smiling at both of them. They both jump apart, only then noticing their close proximity. "Hyuckie's got even you doting on him, huh, Mark?"

Mark forces out a laugh, hoping it doesn't come out as shaky as he feels. "He sure does," he says instead, watching Donghyuck inch away from the corner of his eye.

Whatever this mall is, it's truly host to a number of high profile shoppers. No one bats an eye at Donghyuck, even though he sticks out like a sore spot because of his cast and crutches. Kun even tells him to take his mask off, but the idol refuses, on the grounds that he may run into other people he's met at award shows, like that girl group member.

Mark tries not to read into it.

They spend some time wandering around aimlessly, until Kun prods Donghyuck and asks if he even has anything in mind for Jisung. "I don't know," Donghyuck says, frowning as he looks at a random window display. "I was thinking of walking around until I see something he'd like, but I… don't know what he's into these days. I guess I can't even get him clothes since I don't know what size he wears now, or what kind of fashion he likes."

He looks so morose that Mark has to interject and alleviate the situation. "What about a game console, then?" he suggests. "Yukhei got his cousin a Nintendo Switch for Christmas. Your brother's gonna be turning, what, fifteen?"

"Eighteen," Donghyuck says quietly. “Turning nineteen next week.”

"Oh, right, eighteen," Mark says, swallowing. For some reason, he still pictured Donghyuck's brother as a little kid. It's weird to imagine Donghyuck having a brother already nearing adulthood. "I think he'd still appreciate it. It's a safer bet than clothes, anyway."

"That's a good idea," Kun jumps in, smiling placatingly. "There's an electronics shop on the fourth floor. I'm completely out of the loop on popular games though, so you'll have to fill the gap, Mark."

Despite Kun and Mark's best efforts, Donghyuck remains withdrawn for the rest of the trip, not speaking much except during the actual purchase. He remains silent even on the drive back to the apartment, and the other two attempt to fill the tense silence with small talk. When Kun drops them off, he quietly offers Mark a drive to his own home, shoulders relaxing in relief when Mark declines.

"I think I'll stay with him for a bit more," Mark says, watching as Donghyuck goes to the cafe, leaving the console in the car. Despite it being after working hours, the lights in the cafe are on, meaning Guanheng's probably gone down to make use of the espresso machine.

Kun picks up the box and hands it to Mark, closing the car door. "You're good for him, you know that?" he says suddenly, tilting his head. Mark almost drops the console in his surprise. "Fuck - sorry, uh, what - what do you mean by that?"

"I mean that you… well, you're pretty attuned to Hyuckie and his moods, aren't you? And you aren't fazed by his displays of affection. More than that, he actually trusts you enough to act close with you," Kun explains. "Guanheng and Xiaojun have told me a lot about you, you know?"

He smiles kindly, leaving Mark feeling strangely apprehensive. "Take care of him, Mark, okay? When you guys go to Jeju, you're going to be his pillar of strength. His support. He might be going home to the place he grew up in, but he hasn't been there in six years. You're going to be the most familiar thing there with him."

His gaze drifts off toward the cafe window, obscured by a lacy curtain. Inside, two shadowy silhouettes are visible, the taller one wrapping itself behind the smaller one. “Thank you, though, for what you’re doing, and what you’re about to do,” Kun says quietly. “

"I… I'll do well, I promise," Mark says, quietly amazed at the number of people who care for Donghyuck this deeply. "Thank you for accompanying us tonight, Kun-ssi."

"I told you to call me hyung," Kun jokes, but he smiles and waves at Mark as he gets in his car and drives off.

When Mark enters the cafe, still carrying the box, Donghyuck is nowhere to be found. "He went upstairs already," Guanheng tells him, his laptop and several cups of coffee spread out on one of the booths. He looks exhausted, dressed in sweatpants and a large black hoodie. "You might want to go after him."

"Thanks," Mark says, turning to leave. "Take care of yourself, yeah?"

Guanheng frowns, and it's like his exhaustion has taken physical form, threading itself through every fiber in his body. "I'll be fine. This week's been rough, but it's almost over," he says, turning back to his laptop. "Go ahead."

Mark can't knock with his hands full, but he only has to call out for Donghyuck to open the door. "Sorry, I went ahead," Donghyuck says, stepping aside to let him in. "Just put the box down wherever."

Mark can feel Donghyuck watching him as he puts the console down in the living room. "Kun-hyung didn't offer to drive you home?" Donghyuck eventually asks.

"He did," Mark says evenly. "But I thought I'd hang out with you more. Besides, we should probably test out the Switch. You haven't played with one yet, have you? You should brush up on the games, especially if you're gonna be playing with Jisung."

"Do you think he'll like it?" Donghyuck asks quietly. Mark looks up from the box to find the boy seated on the couch, chewing his lip. "I mean… I've been sending gifts to him every year. Or, I tried to, at least. When I was a trainee, I couldn't afford to buy him anything or even have it delivered to Jeju. After I debuted, I started sending him dance shoes because I know he started dance lessons after I left. When Mom told me about shows or cartoons he liked, I'd try to get him stuff from those. Some little things that reminded me of him."

"Well, did he like them?"

"He would always say thank you," Donghyuck says doubtfully. "And Mom would tell me that he used the shoes all the time, or that he'd put a keychain I sent him on his backpack. Jisung is… I think he's just indifferent to me, at this point. And that's what I'm afraid of, to be honest. He's gotten used to me being gone, but we used to be so close when we were younger. I don't know if I can handle showing up there and getting - nothing."

He smiles softly, lacing his hands together. “He used to look up to me a lot. When we were kids, he always tried to tag along when I played with my friends. I always let him - and if my friends didn’t want to play with him, I’d whine until they gave him and let him come along. He’s... really precious to me, even now, when I haven’t seen him in six years.”

“Does he know that you’re coming back to Jeju?” Mark wonders. Obviously, he and Donghyuck couldn’t just show up to his childhood home unannounced; even if it was a surprise, it would be prudent to inform them of their arrival beforehand.

“No,” Donghyuck shakes his head. “I called Mom last night, after you and Heenim left. To tell her that I was going to visit for New Year’s, and Jisung’s birthday. It was... one whole mess I don’t need to get into - just know it involved a lot of crying on both ends.”

He chuckles, and it sounds just genuine enough that it offers Mark some relief. “I don’t know if it’s the best idea, but Mom seems really set on keeping it a secret from Jisung. I think she’s under the assumption that Jisung’s actually going to be excited to see me.”

Mark frowns at Donghyuck’s self-deprecation. “Well,” he begins. “Considering she’s the one who’s been with him for the past six years, she might have a better idea of how Jisung will react to seeing you than you do, Donghyuck-ah.”

Donghyuck laughs at that, and this time it’s tinged with sadness. “Do you really think Jisung would be excited to see me? After all the birthdays I missed?” It’s not just the birthdays, Mark knows. It’s all the time between them that was lost, time spent growing apart and growing, apart.

“Well, I don’t know,” Mark says honestly, coming to sit beside him. “I don’t know enough about Jisung to say. In fact, I don’t know anything about him, or your mom, or your dad, or your friends. I’m about to meet them on Sunday, and I think it’s a little risky if I don’t know anything about them, don’t you think?”

Donghyuck snorts. “If someone heard you, you’d think I was bringing you to introduce as my fiance or something,” he says, shaking his head in amusement, thankfully missing the way Mark’s face blooms bright red. “Well, Jisungie is the cutest kid you’ll ever meet…”

The console lies forgotten on the floor as Mark listens to Donghyuck talk, time seeming to slow down and wrap itself gently around the scene. Slowly, as the night progresses, they sink deeper into the couch, unconsciously gravitating towards each other as Donghyuck’s soft voice fills the silence. When Donghyuck tells him about Taeil, his voice teacher, his hand, slightly smaller than Mark’s own, brushes against him in the lightest of touches. When Donghyuck giggles until he’s coughing after telling him about the time he locked Youngho, his older cousin in the bathroom of a restaurant, he links his pinky through Mark’s. And by the time Donghyuck finishes telling him about his three best friends, Jeno, Renjun, and Jaemin, his voice is hoarse and quiet, only audible to Mark because he’s resting his head on on the older man’s shoulder.

“You guys sound so close,” Mark comments, after Donghyuck shares the stories of how he met each of his friends. “You keep in touch right?”

“We try to,” Donghyuck says, fiddling with Mark’s fingers. “I’m - well, I  _ was _ busy with my job, and all three of them are in university. Jeno and Renjun are both studying in Jeju, but Jaemin…” here, he trails off, spending a good ten seconds just tracing lines into Mark’s palm. “Jaemin is here. He’s studying at SNU.”

“Oh, really? Then maybe you could’ve met up with him?” Mark says. He snatches his hand out of Donghyuck’s hold when he starts running his fingers back and forth his palm. “That tickles.”

“Sorry,” Donghyuck says, a small smile coming unbidden to his lips. “We - Jaemin and I… well, when I debuted, he was still busy with college applications. My career really kind of started taking off around the same time that he came to Seoul for university. I was busy with comebacks while he was struggling with freshman year, so any plans for meeting just kept getting put off until it wasn’t a priority anymore.”

“Still,” Mark says, frowning contemplatively as he looks up at the ceiling. He feels Donghyuck’s weight shift, and he lowers his shoulder to make the younger boy for comfortable. “You guys have been in the same city all this time - you could have even called him over to the cafe.”

“It’s okay,” Donghyuck says, somewhat sharply. “It’s complicated but… I think it was for the best that Jaemin and I didn’t really see each other, even after he came from Seoul. It’s weird and hard to explain, but I - I needed that distance, even if I missed him.”

“But… he was your best friend, wasn’t he?” Mark presses.

“Yes,” Donghyuck answers immediately, assured. “But… just, trust me when I say that we both needed space from each other. Nana and I have always been different within our friend group, and we didn’t really - well, to put it simply, I didn’t leave Jeju on the best terms with him.”

“Did you guys fight or something?”

“You could say that,” Donghyuck says vaguely, feeling around for the hand that Mark had withdrawn earlier. When he finds it, he pulls it back into his grasp, loosely lifting it up and down. Mark senses that this is the end of  _ this  _ conversation, and he supposes he can’t blame Donghyuck - if he could, he’d prefer not to think of any regrets that he might have over things he’s done in the past.

“Well, who knows? He might go back to Jeju for New Year’s, too.” Mark misses the imperceptible way that Donghyuck stiffens when he says this, grip tightening just a touch more. “If he goes back, you guys can meet up, and then you can solve whatever emotional baggage you’re carrying around for him.”

Donghyuck snorts, turning his face away from Mark. “If only,” he whispers, so quietly that Mark is almost sure that he just imagined it.

-

**fullsundial ** sunkissed #haechan #jeju

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-

It turns out that by “first flight that I can get you first class tickets on,” Heechul seems to have actually meant the first, earliest flight. Mark finds himself dragging his feet along the reflective flooring at Incheon Airport at five on a Sunday morning, listlessly dragging two needlessly heavy suitcases. Beside him, Donghyuck is faring noticeably better, having managed to sneak off at some point to buy a latte from some overpriced airport kiosk. Also, he isn’t carrying any of their luggage.

“Why didn’t you get me any coffee?” Mark whines, arms getting tired from pulling both of their suitcases. To be fair, he isn’t in crutches like Donghyuck is, but the least the other boy could’ve done was to get him some coffee too.

“Should I have?” Donghyuck asks, amused. Mark can see the twinkle in his eyes, the only part of his face not obscured by a face mask. Aside from dressing inconspicuously in a black hoodie and baggy jogging pants (although Mark quickly sees that the hoodie is Balenciaga, and probably insanely expensive), Donghyuck’s rose gold hair has been dyed a soft, ash brown, although most of it is hidden underneath a black (Balenciaga, again) cap. “Poor little hyungie. Are you tired?”

“Yah,” Mark protests, without any real heat. He’s just glad that Donghyuck seems to be in a relatively good mood. Granted, he’d been quiet and distracted in the car earlier, a staff member from KHC Ent coming to pick them both up. Then again, it could simply have been a product of the early time of their departure.

“How are we getting to your house, by the way?” Mark asks later, once they’ve settled in the boarding area. There’s a special, lounge-like place for them to wait in as first-class passengers, and they’re making full use of it for Donghyuck’s privacy. “Are we going to commute?”

“Youngho-hyung is going to pick us up,” Donghyuck says, a small smile on his face. He’s taken off the mask, and just like with the valet at the department store, all the staff in the lounge hadn’t made a fuss over being in the same space as Haechan. Mark had caught the youngest woman’s eyes lingering over Donghyuck at some point, but she quickly turned away and nothing came of it.

“Youngho… your cousin, right? The one you locked in the bathroom?” Mark says, recalling the story of how an eight year-old Donghyuck managed to lock a towering nineteen year-old in with nothing but his wits and a chair propped against the door.

“Yep! As far as I know, he’s the only one aside from Dad that Mom has told. He called me last night to ask what time our flight was, so he could pick us up.” The excitement glittering in Donghyuck’s eyes right now, in Mark’s opinion, makes this entire trip worth it, even if nothing else happens. “He sounded excited, so I… I don’t know, but hearing him sound happy about seeing me just made me happy, too.”

Mark gently flicks him on the forehead. “Of course it did, Donghyuck-ah,” he says fondly. “Didn’t I tell you? Everyone there loves you, so of course they’re excited to see you.”

“I’m excited to see them too,” Donghyuck says, finally grinning. “I just… it still doesn’t feel real, you know? Even in the car ride earlier, I couldn’t process that I was going to the airport to go home, and not for a schedule. I’m really going to be back in Jeju. I’m really going home, hyung.”

The expression of pure happiness on Donghyuck’s face causes Mark’s heart to swell about three sizes. This, he realizes, is the radiance that Heechul, Doyoung, Guanheng, Xiaojun, and so many others had seen in him, and have come to cherish. The sheer amount of love and joy crammed into one lean body is just amazing to Mark, who never wants to see that smile dim.

He smiles, looking away. Even if it makes him happy by proxy, Donghyuck’s smile is a little too bright for him to look at for too long. Something tells him that he’d probably spend the whole time smiling helplessly back at him if he kept looking, and his cheeks already hurt from smiling this wide for just a short time.

“Hey, hyung?” Donghyuck murmurs, tapping the back of his hand to get his attention. So much for looking away, Mark thinks, turning back to catch Donghyuck with a soft expression on his face. “Thank you again, so much. I know I freaked out on you when you first offered, and I acted like a complete brat while you and Heenim were talking, but… I can’t tell you how much this means to me. Whatever happens, I’m glad you pushed me to go home and see them.”

Mark swallows, finding the tender expression on Donghyuck’s face strangely heavy. “You’re welcome, Donghyuck-ah,” he says, ruffling his hair, and he does his best to return Donghyuck’s answering grin.

The flight is short, just over an hour, and it’s made practically instantaneous by the fact that both of them fall asleep before the plane has even fully taken off. Mark is jolted awake by the landing, and he realizes blearily that they’d slept through the complimentary breakfast.

“Damn it,” Mark mutters, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. He’d really been looking forward to getting some free coffee, but it looks like they passed out before he could get some. Donghyuck, who drank a full latte before getting on the plane, is still sleeping soundly, unbothered by the plane landing.

“Donghyuck, wake up,” Mark murmurs, gently jostling him awake.

“Noooo,” Donghyuck whines, half-asleep, turning away from Mark as best he can with the seatbelt holding him in place. “Tell Heenim I’ll be late to practice. He won’t mind.”

Mark laughs in surprise. Donghyuck must be mistaking him for Doyoung, his manager. “Yah, I’m not your manager, silly, I’m Mark,” he says, amused. “We just landed.”

Donghyuck blinks his eyes open slowly, peering at him blearily. “We’ve landed? We’re in Jeju?”

Mark smiles, gently steering him towards the window. “See for yourself.”

Donghyuck turns to look outside the window, and although the landing strip of Jeju International Airport isn’t anything too striking (even to Mark, who’s seeing it for the first time), what matters is the bright blue sky that stretches out for miles and miles, flaunting its color as if it’s summer, not winter. Mark sees the bright beam of sunlight through the window, landing squarely on Donghyuck’s face, and he can’t help but feel that the island is celebrating his return, giving him the warmest welcome it can muster even against the chilly February air.

Donghyuck looks back at him, face a mixture of several indecipherable emotions. “Let’s go?” he asks, voice small. Mark smiles reassuringly at him, choosing not to say anything about his shiny eyes. “Come on, then - you don’t want to keep Youngho-ssi waiting, do you?”

Donghyuck is distracted, Mark can tell, spacing out beside him as he waits for their luggage. Even under the cap and the mask, Mark feels like he can hear his brain racing, thoughts rushing through his mind at a hundred miles per hour. By the time they’re exiting the airport, accompanied by one of the airport staff (Heechul had apparently called ahead to the airport to inform them of Donghyuck’s arrival and the need for absolute discretion), he’s a little more grounded, taking slower and smaller steps until he comes to a standstill just outside the arrival area.

“Donghyuck? What’s wrong?” Mark asks, concerned. Beside them, the staff member also pauses, looking politely worried.

Donghyuck stares at the ground for a bit, seemingly lost in thought, before shaking his head and looking up. “Sorry, I’m just… I’m nervous,” he says, laughing slightly. Before Mark can say anything, though, he strides forward decisively, or about as well as he can on his crutches. “Let’s just go before I lose my nerve completely.”

The staff member accompanies them to the pick-up area, waiting unobtrusively beside them. Mark places his hand reassuringly on Donghyuck’s shoulder as the younger boy looks around, scanning the crowds of people for Youngho. A few moments later, he freezes in place, eyes widening, and Mark follows his gaze to find an incredibly tall man, possibly taller than even Yukhei, muscling his way through the crowd with a huge smile on his face, clearly looking at Donghyuck. The idol looks like a deer caught in the headlights, and the tension of his frame under Mark’s hand makes it feel like he’s torn between standing frozen in place, or hobbling away on his crutches and escaping the scene forever.

“Hyuckie?” the man calls out hopefully, the smile on his face widening when he seemingly confirms that it  _ is  _ Donghyuck. “Hyuckie!”

Mark only has enough time to pull his hand away before the man, Youngho, runs straight to Donghyuck, carefully encircling him and his crutches in a tight embrace. “Lee Donghyuck, you little bastard,” he says, swinging the both of them from side to side. “I can’t believe you managed to skip out on New Year’s for six straight years! I’m surprised Auntie hasn’t dragged you back down here before this!”

Another man, this time much shorter than Youngho, shorter than even Donghyuck, comes up behind them, unable to push through the crowds the way Youngho had. “Yah, be more careful with him, Youngho,” he chides, his words softened by the fond look on his face. “You have to get him back to Mrs. Lee in one piece, or she’ll never forgive you.”

Youngho waves him off, nuzzling his chin on top of Donghyuck’s head. Mark takes the opportunity to bow the staff member out, giving them leave to go and assuring them that they’d be fine from here. “Hyuckie’s all grown-up now, he can take a little more loving than he used to when he was younger,” he says, beaming. He looks down to where Donghyuck’s face is pressed into his chest, just under his chin. “See? He’s all grown up now - remember, when he left, he only came up to, like, the middle of my chest? Man, I can’t wait until Auntie sees you, you’re probably two whole feet taller than her by now - Hyuckie?”

Mark steps forward just as Donghyuck steps away from Youngho’s arms, and he’s quick to hold the crutches before they hit the ground, as Donghyuck releases them to swipe hastily at his eyes. “Hyung,” he chokes out, sounding like a strange mixture of a sob and a laugh. “We’re in public and you’re being so fucking  _ loud _ .”

There’s a brief pause during which Youngho’s eyes get suspiciously misty, and the shorter man beside him comes up to stroke his back gently. Then, Youngho’s reaching out to gently pull Donghyuck’s hands away from his face, laughing at his cousin’s tear-streaked face. “Yah, did you just swear at me, you little brat?” Youngho demands, smile brighter than ever despite the tears pooling at the corners of his eyes. “I knew you’d lose all your manners when Auntie decided to let you go off to Seoul on your own!”

Donghyuck laughs loudly at that, and that’s all it takes for him to return Youngho’s embrace, tucking himself securely into the warm hold of his cousin. The shorter man smiles at the two of them, before turning to Mark. “Hi, you must be Mark-ssi, right?” he says, bowing slightly. Mark mirrors the action. “Yes - and you are…?”

“I’m Taeil, Hyuckie’s old voice teacher,” the man says.

“Emphasis on  _ old _ ,” Donghyuck quips from where he’s buried in Youngho’s chest, erupting into muffled giggles when Youngho pinches him in the side. “Yah, don’t insult my fiance right in front of me like that! Don’t think I’m going to let it slide just because you happened to make me emotional!”

“Taeil-hyungie loves me more than he loves you, and you know it,” Donghyuck retorts, but Mark can hear the laughter in his voice. “I still can’t believe you managed to propose to him. I thought Mom was pulling my leg when she called to tell me last year.”

“Trust me, we were all shocked,” Taeil says dryly, earning a “Hey!” from Youngho. “I honestly thought it would take another ten years, and that I’d have to get married in a wheelchair.”

“Quit it with the wheelchair jokes, you’re just encouraging Hyuckie,” Youngho complains, finally releasing his cousin. He turns to Mark, who literally has to look up to see his face. “Hey there, Mark! I can’t say I know much about you, since I didn’t know you existed before Hyuckie told me you were coming with him, but you must be a good guy. Thanks for kicking his ass into gear and making him come home.”

Mark laughs. “Well, you may not know much about me, but Donghyuck’s already told me about the time he locked you in a bathroom,” he says, prompting Donghyuck to look at him with a betrayed expression on his face.

“Yah, Lee Donghyuck!” Youngho says, resting his hands on his hips like an angry mother. “I thought we agreed never to talk about the bathroom incident ever again!”

“In my defense, I didn’t think Mark-hyung would rat me out, but I guess I should’ve seen it coming,” Donghyuck says, narrowing his eyes at Mark in mock offense. Mark simply laughs it off and hands him his crutches, ruffling his hair to appease him.

They’re beginning to attract some cursory attraction, talking loudly in the pick-up area like this, so Taeil suggests that they get back to the car to get home as soon as possible, especially considering that Donghyuck and Mark are still exhausted from flying so early. Youngho insists on taking both the suitcases from Mark, and Taeil falls into step between the two of them, arm slung loosely over Donghyuck’s shoulders.

“Jisungie’s been sleeping over at Chenle’s since yesterday, because apparently Jisung wanted one last hangout before he’d be stuck around the house for New Year’s,” Youngho informs them, loading their luggage into his car. “He won’t be back until tomorrow. Auntie’s been talking my ear off about you surprising Jisung for his birthday, she’s so excited.”

Donghyuck settles comfortably in the back seat with Mark, having been assisted into the car. “Do you really think Jisung will be excited to see me, hyung?” he asks, worrying his lip. Taeil climbs into the front seat and they drive off, the interior of the car pleasantly warm after the biting chill of the early Jeju breeze.

“Jisung? Are you kidding me?” Youngho snorts. “Donghyuck, I can personally attest to the fact that Jisung’s never grown out of his idol worship for you. Oh - I guess that’s pretty literal now, considering you’re actually an idol.” He snickers at his own joke, not caring that nobody else is finding it funny. “He hasn’t gotten any less awkward while you were gone, though, so cut the kid some slack if he doesn’t jump for joy the minute he sees you. He’s probably gonna hide in his room like the angst-ridden teen that he is.”

Donghyuck laughs, a note of surprise evident in his voice. “Are you serious, hyung?”

“Did Ten ever tell you about Jisung’s dance showcase last year, at his high school?” Taeil interjects, turning around in his seat to look at Donghyuck. When the idol shakes his head, he smiles. “He entered the school talent show with a dance solo to  _ Chrysanthemum _ . He won second place - Chenle won first - and I don’t think he’s ever been prouder of anything he choreographed.”

Donghyuck opens his mouth but says nothing at first, eyes blinking rapidly. “I’m going to cry if you guys don’t stop saying stuff like that,” he warns jokingly, half-heartedly raising a crutch to point at Taeil, but Mark can see the slight glimmer in his still red-rimmed eyes. “Mom never told me that he chose  _ Chrysanthemum  _ for his dance showcase.”

“Because even she didn’t know he’d chosen that song until she watched him perform,” Taeil says, chuckling. “Jisung wouldn’t tell people which song he was using until the day of the performance itself. If what Ten told me is true, Jisung begged your mom not to tell you that he used your song. For some strange, very teenaged reason, I think he’s a bit embarrassed to show how much admires you.”

“So go easy on him, yeah, Donghyuck?” Youngho says, smoothly turning into a curve. Mark’s been staring at the passing scenery this whole time, listening to the conversation idly. He pictures Jisung, even if he doesn’t know what he looks like, and imagines a boy dancing alone in a studio, listening to the notes of Donghyuck’s voice washing over his ears. He wonders what the song means to Jisung, as Donghyuck’s brother, what he felt as he created the choreography and performed it on stage. “Jisung misses you a whole lot, but he’s also gotten accustomed to you not being around. Give him time to adjust, and don’t be upset if you guys don’t click right away. It’s been six years, after all. He’s not the same little kid as he was when you left.”

“Yeah,” Donghyuck says quietly. Mark instinctively offers his hand in silent assurance, and Donghyuck takes it almost instantly. Despite the lingering doubts that Mark knows he still has, he also knows that Youngho and Taeil’s words have comforted him immensely. Any reassurance at all that Jisung still considers him an important figure in his life is a buoy that Donghyuck can cling to, a godsend in the sea of his insecurity and worry. “Yeah, I’m… I’m just glad I have the chance to try again with him.”

“Good,” Youngho says approvingly, before looking up at the rear-view mirror to catch Mark’s eye. “Anyway, Mark, tell me about yourself. Who are you and how did you manage to wrangle Hyuckie into visiting us here? How did you guys meet?”

“So many questions, hyung.” Donghyuck says, prodding Youngho’s shoulder. The man swipes at his hand. “Yah, it’s better that he goes through a trial run with me first before he meets with Auntie. You  _ know _ she’s going to question him within an inch of his life.”

“I’m sorry, what?” Mark says, suddenly blanching.

Youngho lets out a short bark of laughter. “Mark, you’re going to be meeting the woman who almost chased Kim Heechul away from her house with nothing but a pair of slippers,” he says, grinning. “Auntie has always been protective and nosy about Donghyuck and Jisung’s lives. In fact, I’m surprised she hasn’t tried to wheedle any info about you from Donghyuck - or wait, don’t tell me, she has, hasn’t she?”

Mark turns to Donghyuck, horrified, but the younger boy just smiles and apologetically flashes him a v-sign. “I tried to tell her enough so that she’d be appeased, but she’s probably still going to grill you when we arrive,” he says, holding up his other hand to add a second v-sign, as if that makes things better. “Don’t worry though, you’ll get to nap and have a good meal before she starts interrogating you.”

“Don’t lie, she’ll know,” Youngho says seriously, while Donghyuck nods his head emphatically. “For real, though? She’s got a sixth sense for lies. I have no idea how she figured out that I was the one who lost her hoop earrings when I was ten.”

“That doesn’t count because you tried to pin it on Jeno,” Taeil says, chuckling. “Of course your mom didn’t believe you.”

“Oh, yeah - did Mom tell Jeno or Renjun about me coming back?” Donghyuck asks casually.

“No, I don’t think so,” Youngho says. “Auntie might get them to go over to your house today, though. She really loves surprises.”

“And I love being used as a prop in her schemes,” Donghyuck sighs, leaning back in the chair. “So it’s just gonna be Mom and Dad there, right?”

“Basically, yes,” Taeil says. “Also, your mom told me that she would text me as soon as I had permission to bring over Ten to your house. She hasn’t told him about this either, and it’s been killing me not to tell him that you’re back in Jeju.”

Donghyuck beams, pure joy suffusing his face. “Oh my god, yes, please bring Ten-hyung over later. I don’t care if I’m too tired to do anything but lie down on him, I just want to see him.”

“I know I told you to go easy on Jisung, but you should go easy on Ten, too, okay?” Youngho says, a small smile on his face. “If he starts ripping into you, just let him. I think he’ll cry if he has to see you without an alternative outlet for his emotions.”

“Good, I hope he does cry,” Donghyuck retorts, prompting everyone to laugh. “What? He laughed at me when I cried while I was saying goodbye to him! Besides,  _ I’m  _ probably going to cry when I see him. It’s only fair that he gets ugly red eyes too.”

“So petty,” Youngho says, shaking his head fondly. The conversation naturally dies out when he pulls up in front of a cozy-looking house. The windows are covered up with heavy-looking beige curtains, matching the foundation and panelling of the house. The stone-gray roof stands out starkly against the bright blue sky, but the first thing that catches the eye are the walls, their color contrasting beautifully with the cool environment.

Donghyuck swallows, eyes roaming over the scene as he stares quietly at his home. No one else in the car speaks, letting him have his moment to compose himself. Youngho turns slightly in his seat, sharing a tender, wordless look with Taeil before turning to look at Donghyuck. Mark himself remains silent, unobtrusive - it’s as if the rest of the world has faded away for Donghyuck.

“The house is yellow now,” he says quietly.

“Yeah,” Youngho says, smiling. “They let Jisung pick the color when they repainted it.”

They all pile out of the car, Mark coming around to help Donghyuck get down on his side. Youngho is just taking out their suitcases from the back when the door of the house opens, revealing a petite, middle-aged woman still in her sleeping clothes, a coat thrown over her shoulders.

Donghyuck freezes when he sees her, hand automatically going up to clutch Mark’s shoulder. He covers it reassuringly with his own for just a moment, before gently placing it on the small of his back and pushing him forward. “Donghyuck-ah,” they hear her call out, and that’s all they get before she’s striding over to them as quickly as her legs will allow, her arms spread out in an invitation of love. 

The chilly early-morning air whips around them, biting at their exposed skin, but they feel nothing but warmth as they watch Mrs. Lee pull her son down for a hug. Donghyuck’s mother barely comes up to his chin, but that doesn’t really matter, because it allows him to envelop her in an all-encompassing embrace, letting his crutches fall to the ground as he hugs his mother back for all he’s worth. “Hi, mom,” he breathes out, voice tiny, and his mother, despite being so much smaller, sways the both of them from side to side the way Youngho had done at the airport.

Mrs. Lee pulls back, only to grasp her son’s face with both hands to pull him down and start peppering his face with kisses. “Donghyuck-ah, my son,” she exclaims in between kisses, and Donghyuck laughs out loud, bending at the knees to make it easier for her to reach him. “I missed you, I missed you, I missed you!”

“I missed you too, Mom,” Donghyuck says thickly, voice choked up. His mother lands a small peck on his nose before pulling back to look at his face, eyes shining with sheer emotion and joy. Her smile, Mark notices, is the exact same heart shape as Donghyuck’s. “I missed you so, so, so much.”

“Is that Donghyuck?” they hear another voice call out, and Mark looks up to see a tall man come out of the house, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. His whole face lights up when he sees his son, the sudden happiness on his face seeming to shave off years from his appearance. He jogs out in the cold wearing nothing but his pajamas, and in a second he’s wrapping up his wife and son in a tight bear hug, managing to lift both of them clear off the ground. “Yah, you’ve grown so much, Lee Donghyuck!” he declares, swinging his family around. Donghyuck yells in delight, hands coming up to wrap around his parents. “What do they feed you over there in Seoul?”

“Dad, put me down!” Donghyuck says half-heartedly, laughter cutting through the serenity of the morning.

“No way,” Mr. Lee refuses, turning a full three hundred and sixty degrees on the spot, still manhandling his wife and son. “We just got you back, and you’re already trying to get away? Don’t expect us to let you out of our sight the whole time you’re here!”

Mark laughs at that, prompting Donghyuck’s parents to look at him. “Ah, you must be Mark!” Mrs. Lee says. “Honey, put us down - be careful with Hyuckie’s leg! - Lee Mark, yes?”

“Yes, I am,” Mark says hastily, sinking into a low, respectful bow. “It’s nice to meet you, Eommoni, Abeoji.”

“Yah, so polite,” Mrs. Lee says fondly, reaching out to pet Mark’s head as if praising a child. He flushes, feeling like a little kid. “Are you tired? How was the flight? Donghyuck didn’t make things difficult for you, did he?”

“Mom, stop that,” Donghyuck whines, trapped in place by his father’s arms over his shoulders. “Don’t embarrass me in front of Mark-hyung, I literally just got back here.”

“This isn’t embarrassing you, this is basic good manners,” Mrs. Lee says, turning to her son with her hands on her hips. “Knowing you, you probably made him carry both of your suitcases, didn’t you? Mark here probably couldn’t refuse because you keep complaining about your injury.”

Donghyuck pouts. “But I  _ am _ injured!”

“You are, and I’m going to have a talk with you about overworking yourself,” Mrs. Lee says severely. “You think I don’t know? I make Heechul-ah tell me everything about what you do when you’re practicing.” Donghyuck blanches at that, throat bobbing as he swallows nervously. “He makes me promise not to interfere with you in exchange for him giving me updates on what you’re doing, but we are definitely going to have a talk about you staying overnight at the studio to practice, young man.”

“Donghyuck-ah overworking himself? What a novel concept,” Youngho says dryly, coming up with their luggage. “Anyway, Auntie, you should probably set them up in their rooms for now. They were at the airport since before five a.m., so I’m sure they’re exhausted, especially Mark.”

“I’m okay, really - ” Mark tries to say, but he’s cut off by a pointed look from Donghyuck.

“Yes, absolutely!” Mrs. Lee says, clapping her hands together. “Thank you so much for picking them up, Youngho. You and Taeil should go get some sleep, too. You can bring Ten over later in the afternoon.”

“Oh, Ten is absolutely going to flip when he finds out,” Youngho says, a grin crossing his face. “He was listening to Donghyuck’s album all day yesterday for some reason - indulging in catharsis or something, whatever he calls it.”

“Ten-hyung listens to my albums?” Donghyuck says, sounding pleasantly surprised.

“I don’t know why that’s so surprising to you,” Taeil says, sighing fondly at him. “Not only are they objectively good songs, they’re  _ your _ songs. Which reminds me - when you’re feeling up to it, come down to my studio for a little music session. I’ve wanted to write a piano arrangement for  _ Chrysanthemum _ ever since I first heard it, and I want you there with me. I think your fans will love it if you play a piano cover for it, don’t you?”

“Yes, please, absolutely,” Donghyuck says enthusiastically, bouncing in place. His father chuckles affectionately, still embracing him from behind. “Thanks, hyung, for coming to pick us up. I - it’s so great to see you guys again.”

“Look at that - looks like Seoul didn’t strip you of all your manners,” Youngho says dramatically, looking up at the sky as if in reverence. Donghyuck bares his teeth at him, sticking his tongue out right after. Youngho mirrors his expression, his face breaking into a grin right after. “Get some rest, kiddo. And you too, Mark. It’s nice to meet you - I hope we can talk more later after you guys have slept.”

“Same here,” Mark says, raising his hand in farewell as Youngho and Taeil go back to their car. The couple wave and call out one last time before getting in and driving off. Mark watches the car fade into the Jeju horizon before the weather makes itself known, chilly air biting at his skin and causing him to shudder.

“My goodness, it’s so cold outside,” Mrs. Lee says, shivering. “Honey, can you grab their luggage - no, Mark, it’s quite alright, let him take it for you! Let’s get inside before we all catch a cold.”

Mr. Lee takes the suitcases from Mark with an insistent tug, and he’s left to walk beside Donghyuck as they make their way back to the house. Donghyuck’s holding his mother’s hand with his right, but his left hand lingers and touches against Mark’s, eventually linking their pinkies together. Mark looks at him and is met by a dazzling smile, one that he returns with equal enthusiasm.

The inside of the house is just as cozy as the outside suggests, the warmth from the central heating engulfing them all and making them sigh as they step inside. Mark takes his first look around Donghyuck’s childhood home - the polished, dark brown wood; the clutter of coats and jackets tossed haphazardly across the living area; the countless framed pictures that hang on the wall, littering the surface with precious memories.

Mark lets go of Donghyuck’s hand to walk slowly over to the wall and examine some of the photos, much to the idol’s chagrin. “Ah, hyung, no,” he whines, wobbling over to him. “Don’t look, it’s embarrassing!”

Mark grins, ignoring Donghyuck’s protests and eventually his half-hearted pushes, eyes roaming over the wall. The surface is covered with them - pictures of Donghyuck in his school uniform, singing on stage as a child, pictures of him as a baby, swaddled in yellow onesies and half-buried in stuffed toys. There are pictures of him with other people, too - Mark spots Taeil and Youngho in some, and he can only assume that the little boy that Donghyuck is hugging in nearly every picture he’s in with him is Jisung.

“He was a cute kid, wasn’t he?” Mrs. Lee asks, breaking Mark out of his stupor as she comes over, a fond smile on her face.

“I’m still cute,” Donghyuck pouts, earning a laugh from his mother and Mark, the former reaching up to pinch him on the cheek. “Yes, you are,” Mrs. Lee agrees easily. “And you’re very, very tired right now, too. You should get some sleep before the visitors start coming. Oh, and Mark - ” she turns to him, a slight frown on her face. “I’m sorry, we were very busy with New Year’s preparations, and I wasn’t able to make up the guest room for you in time. If it’s alright with you, can you sleep in Hyuckie’s room for now? We’ve set up some beddings on the floor for you, but when you wake up, the guest room will be ready for you to move in to.”

“Oh, you don’t have to go through all that trouble - ” Mark begins, but Donghyuck cuts him off. “Mark-hyung can just stay in my room with me the whole visit,” he says. “He won’t mind.”

“Need I remind you that there’s only one bed in your room, and it’s a twin-size at that,” Mrs. Lee says severely, and Mark just barely avoids choking on his spit, mind immediately jumping to the implications of the statement. “Are you proposing to make Mark sleep on the floor this whole visit? After he went out of his way to come with you here?”

“We’ll both sleep on the floor then,” Donghyuck says stubbornly. “Besides, I might not fit on my bed anymore, either. I’ve grown taller since the last time I was here!”

“Aish, this kid,” Mrs. Lee sighs, but her exasperated expression doesn’t last very long, giving way to a grudging, fond smile. “Well, Mark, you heard the boss. Are you okay with that?”

“That’s okay with me,” Mark says, forcing himself to chuckle casually.  _ It’ll just be like the time you and Yukhei slept over at his apartment _ , he tells himself, before his brain helpfully supplies,  _ yeah, but like, for two whole weeks this time. Good luck! _

When they go up to Donghyuck’s bedroom, the first room adjacent to the stairs on the second floor, Mark is hit with a mild sense of deja vu. The walls are the same shades of cream and beige as Donghyuck’s apartment in Seoul, with the same dark wooden bookshelves and nearly the same types and number of Michael Jackson posters covering the walls. The only thing missing is the sunflower decor, but Mark notes, with a hint of amusement, that there’s a wall clock in the shape of a yellow sun, a direct parallel to the sunflower clock that he has in Seoul.

Donghyuck watches him as he looks around, face unreadable. “It’s similar, huh?” he asks quietly, and Mark laughs. “It really is,” he says in wonder, a smile coming unbidden to his face.

There’s a pile of soft beddings and a thick fleece blanket laid out on the floor beside a twin-size bed covered in a warm duvet and several comforters. Donghyuck hobbles over to the bed immediately, sitting down carefully on the edge and sighing in bliss as he slowly lies down, allowing his crutches to thump soundlessly onto the carpeted floor. “This is the best feeling ever,” he says happily, eyes closing as he snuggles deeply into the mattress.

“And to think. I’ll be sleeping on the floor for two weeks while you get to have a comfortable bed,” Mark jokingly complains, making his way to the cozy space set up for him on the floor.

“Let me have this for now, hyung,” Donghyuck says, eyes still closed as his mother chuckles while she fusses over Mark. “I promise after this, I’ll sleep with you on the floor in solidarity.”

Mark laughs. “You better,” he says. The plush bedding and blanket feel like heaven to his body, the soft fabrics engulfing him in warmth. “You guys are fine?” Mrs. Lee asks, voice lowered to a whisper.

“Yes, Eommoni, thank you very much,” Mark murmurs, unable to keep his eyes open any longer. He just manages to stay conscious for long enough to register the feeling of Mrs. Lee ruffling his hair, and to hear the door closing before he drifts off.

-

**BOSS HEECHUL @kimheenim** this was donghyuck-ah when he first came to seoul

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**Full Sun☀ @official_haechan ** stop

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**juliet @sunjulie ** THANK YOU HEENIM FOR THIS WONDERFUL FOOD

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**hello hyuck! @sunnies ** AHHHH CUTE CUTE CUTE CUTE CUTE CUTE!!!!!

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-

“I swear, if Auntie’s pulling our leg - ”

“Come on, do you really think she would joke about this?”

“You expect me to believe he’s just gonna show up now? After six years?”

“Auntie looked so happy though, I really don’t think she’s - oh.”

Mark turns around in his half-asleep state, eyebrows unconsciously furrowing at the sound of voices. He’s blissfully warm, and the blankets feel so soft and nice against his skin. He burrows deeper into them, trying to ignore the sudden voices that are interrupting his rest.

“I don’t know who  _ he  _ is,” one of the voice begins, sounding closer and closer. Mark hugs his pillow tighter, turning away from the noise. “But that’s Hyuckie, Injunnie.”

“Five more minutes,” Mark hears someone drowsily say, and this time he recognizes it as Donghyuck’s sleepy voice. He gives up on trying to go back to sleep, instead choosing to keep his eyes closed and his body still as he registers the presence of people in the room.

“Hyuckie?” Mark hears the other voice say, then feels the air in the room shift as two people step over him and his beddings to make their way to Donghyuck’s bed. He blearily blinks his eyes open, quietly turning around to see two men kneel beside Donghyuck’s awakening form.

One of them, the shorter one based on their heights just kneeling down, gently cards his hands through Donghyuck’s hair. “Hey, Hyuckie,” he breathes out softly, and even though Mark has never heard his voice in his life, he knows instinctively that the man is smiling at Donghyuck as he speaks, voice saturated with affection. “Wake up, you dumbass.”

“Nooo, I don’t wanna,” Donghyuck whines, but Mark watches as he slowly blinks the sleep away from his eyes and focuses on the two faces in front of him. Mark waits with bated breath, waiting for recognition and maybe even surprise to register on Donghyuck’s face, but the boy’s face simply melts into the sweetest expression he’s ever seen, a gentle, wide smile gracing his features.

“Good morning, Jeno-yah, Injunnie-yah,” he says softly, smiling with hazy eyes. Mark, and probably the two other men, Jeno and Renjun, realize with a start that Donghyuck must think he’s dreaming. “Where’s Nana? I thought we were gonna meet up at his place?”

“Hyuckie - ” one of them starts, but they’re cut off when Donghyuck inches forward and wraps his arms around them, pulling them closer and snuggling in between them. “Five more minutes,” Donghyuck demands cutely, eyes falling shut. Mark’s heart clenches as one of the boys’ hand hovers above Donghyuck’s body, unsure whether to hug him back or not. “Five more minutes. It’s too cold outside, and you’re really warm.”

“Okay, Hyuckie,” the other, taller one agrees, leaning in to oblige Donghyuck. He’s got blonde hair styled in an undercut, from what Mark can see from his position on the floor. His voice is shaky, sounding like it’s caught between a laugh and a sob. “Just five more minutes, okay?”

Donghyuck makes a small noise of contentment and leans in, seemingly falling asleep again between the pair’s embrace. True to their word, the three of them stay silent for around five minutes, as best as Mark can estimate. Mark very nearly falls back asleep himself, watching them breathe quietly and almost in sync through hooded eyes, barely peeking.

He shuts them fully when he hears one of them say, “We should wake him up, Jeno,” and sinks back into his pillows, pretending to still be asleep.

“Hyuckie, wake up, it’s us,” one of them says. Mark hears Donghyuck shuffling around in his bed and groaning, mumbling complaints until his voice abruptly fades out.

“Oh,” Donghyuck says, and his voice is the smallest that Mark has ever heard it.

“Hi, Hyuckie,” one of the boys say, and Mark dares to peek through his eyelids to see the shorter one stroking Donghyuck’s hair again, like he had while he was still asleep. “Do you remember us?”

There’s a short beat of silence, in which Mark feels his heart rate spiking due to some strange, sudden nervousness, and then Donghyuck laughs in surprise. The sound sends all the apprehension flying away from Mark’s body, his body relaxing back into the floor. “Why are you acting like I was a toddler when I last saw you, Renjun?” Donghyuck asks, and his voice sounds impossibly fond. “Did you think I could ever forget your ugly face?”

The shorter of the two, apparently Renjun, laughs in response, immediately giving Donghyuck a violent noogie. “As if you look any better than me!” he exclaims, doubling down on his efforts when Donghyuck yells and tries to get away, giggling helplessly. “Yah, you think you’re all that now that you’re an idol, huh?”

“Well, which one of us got a solo cover shoot for Elle Korea?” Donghyuck manages to retort in between his giggling, but any further attempts to talk are hampered by the taller male, presumably Jeno, joining in on Renjun’s attack. “Okay, I’m sorry, stop, stop, stop!”

“Never,” Jeno declares, and Mark would’ve happily pretended he didn’t exist for as long as this happy bubble would never be penetrated. As it is, Jeno accidentally kicks Mark in his excitement, and he looks around in confusion to see what he had hit.

“Oh my god!” Jeno gasps, hand flying up to cover his mouth. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m so sorry!”

Mark groans, feeling superficial pain in the spot where Jeno had hit him. “I’m okay,” he says hazily, still feeling the leftover effects of his nap, but it seems his assurance goes unheard by Jeno. From the bed, Donghyuck rolls over onto his back, laughing.

“I’m sorry!” Jeno exclaims, bowing to Mark and not ceasing at all in his apologies. “I’m sorry, oh my god, I haven’t even gotten your name, I’m so, so, so, sorry - ”

“Relax, Jeno,” Donghyuck cuts in, still laughing. “That’s just Mark-hyung. He doesn’t mind, right, hyung?”

“I don’t mind,” Mark agrees easily, waving Jeno off as he slowly pushes himself up. He tries to smile in a reassuring way as he insists, “Seriously, dude, it’s alright. You didn’t hurt me or anything.”

“Jeno thinks he’s a lot stronger than he is,” Renjun says seriously, earning a pinch from a pouting Jeno that only makes him laugh and flinch away. “Sorry to disturb you guys - Donghyuck’s mom just sent us up to see that Hyuckie was here for ourselves. I’m Huang Renjun - the guy who just kicked you in your sleep is Lee Jeno.”

“I’m so sorry,” Jeno says again, bowing one last time. Now that Mark’s getting a good look at their features, he’s struck by how different they look. Jeno’s sharp, sculpted features are softened by the apologetic and remorseful expression on his face, while Renjun’s almost elfin face is transformed by his biting tone and mischievous smile.

“My name’s Mark.” He smiles in return, feeling strangely at ease in their company. “Lee Mark. I’m a friend of Donghyuck’s.”

“Yeah, we figured,” Renjun says, laughing. “Otherwise Auntie wouldn’t have let you stay here. She neglected to inform us that you would be here when she sent us upstairs.”

“She neglected to tell us that Hyuckie was coming back for New Year’s in the first place!” Jeno adds, finally seeming to relax. “We both didn’t believe her until she told us to check for ourselves.”

“Same old Mom, alright,” Donghyuck says, smiling fondly. “Of course she kept me a secret from everyone. Youngho-hyung and Taeil-hyung told me that she hadn’t even told Ten-hyung.”

“Oh, I would pay to see Ten-hyung’s face when he finds out you’re back,” Renjun says gleefully. He’s silent for a beat, as if belatedly realizing something, and then his face breaks into a huge grin. “Speaking of which, you’re back! It took you six fucking years, but you finally came back down here, Lee Donghyuck.”

Donghyuck smiles, and Mark notices that it’s a little tinged with apprehension. “Yeah, I’m back now,” he says, voice a little lower. “Took six years and a whole fractured leg, but I eventually came back.”

“We always knew you’d come back,” Jeno says, seemingly oblivious to Donghyuck’s sudden melancholy, or maybe he isn’t. These are Donghyuck’s childhood best friends, after all, and Mark could never claim to know Donghyuck as well as they do. Maybe Jeno and Renjun see through Donghyuck’s facade as if looking through clear glass, and maybe that’s why they lean in, Renjun resting his head near Donghyuck’s stomach, and Jeno linking his fingers through his friend’s.

“As if you could stay away forever,” Renjun scoffs, a small smile coming onto his face as he looks up at the ceiling. “You’d miss your mom’s cooking too much.”

“You’d miss the beaches,” Jeno adds.

“And Jisung, of course,” Renjun follows up. “Whenever you chose to came back, we knew there would be no way in hell that you’d miss Jisung’s graduation.”

Mark watches Donghyuck’s eyes get just the slightest bit shiny, and it seems that Renjun and Jeno are aware. Similar, knowing smiles cross their faces in the same instant, gone almost the next moment. For a few minutes, nothing more needs to be said, and they all sit in comfortable silence as the bright sun sneaks through the curtains, casting the room in its warm, radiant glow.

-

**fullsundial ** haechan: you can’t make me do aegyo! also haechan: *is the cutest idol to ever exist*

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**@heyhaechan ** literally all he has to do is breathe and all of south korea Melts  _ [922 likes] _

**@lunniere ** we stan a king who has the entire nation whipped for him  _ [804 likes] _

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-

The enigmatic “Ten-hyung” that Youngho had mentioned comes right before dinner, accompanied by the tall man himself and his fiance, both seemingly holding their laughter in. Mrs. Lee silently lets him in with a knowing smile, watching him as he stomps his way up the stairs.

Mark, who’s lounging around at the foot of Donghyuck’s bed while the idol stretches out lazily on top of it (both Jeno and Renjun having left in the afternoon, promising to come back for dinner), hears the loud footsteps first, and looks at Donghyuck questioningly, mildly worried. He’s met with a bright, catlike grin that only adds to his confusion.

“Oh boy,” is all that Donghyuck says, before his door is flung open, and Mark is greeted by the incredible sight of a short man with messy, ash blonde hair, dressed only in a crop top and sweatpants despite the frigid weather.

“Lee Donghyuck!” the man yells, pointing an accusing finger at the boy in question. “How dare you come into  _ my _ place, into  _ my _ town, into  _ my _ territory without notifying me first?”

“Please sir, don’t throw me out!” Donghyuck wails without missing a beat. “I’m just a poor, injured soul seeking asylum in your good state!”

“I am infuriated by the fact that I’m too emotional to come up with a comeback right now,” the man replies, shaking a fist at Donghyuck. “Come here, you little bastard!”

Despite his statement, the man charges at Donghyuck himself, leaping onto the bed and causing Donghyuck to erupt into raucous laughter when they topple over onto the mattress. Mark briefly experiences a spike of abject fear when he thinks that they might jostle Donghyuck’s leg the wrong way somehow, but he calms down after seeing how carefully the man avoids Donghyuck’s cast, leaning on every other part of him except for his injured leg.

“I can’t  _ believe _ I had to find out from Taeil-hyung!” the man yells, crushing Donghyuck in his hold. “Do you know how humiliating that is? For Moon Taeil of all people to have info that I didn’t?”

“Oh, the shame,” Donghyuck says dramatically, pressing his cheek against the man’s own. “Whatever will you do now, Ten-hyung? You’re a social outcast. A pariah. Taemin will never be your friend now.”

“You take that back!” Ten demands, pulling back to squish Donghyuck’s face between his hands. “I  _ will _ become Taemin’s friend, damn it, and he’s going to collab with me and I’ll meet Minho and charm the eyebrows right off of him, just you wait.”

The two of them dissolve into laughter as Ten contorts Donghyuck’s face into increasingly hilarious expressions, until the older man seems to realize that Mark is still in the room. “You!” Ten suddenly says, addressing Mark. He jumps to attention, suddenly terrified again. “I don’t know who you are, but if you  _ ever _ tell anyone that I gave Hyuckie unironic affection, I  _ will _ find you and make you wish your father spared you the grief of existence and pulled out instead.”

“Ten-hyung!” Donghyuck gasps, clearly trying to make a scandalized expression and only succeeding in laughing harder. “You can’t say those kinds of things to Mark-hyung!”

“And why not, hmm?” Ten asks, leaning forward up in Donghyuck’s personal space and comically raising and lowering his eyebrows. “Is he special? I can’t be mean to him?”

Donghyuck laughs, pushing Ten’s face away. “He’s special, alright,” he says fondly, shockingly honest. Mark is caught off guard, blessedly turning away in time before either of them catch sight of his burning face. “Besides, if Mark-hyung hadn’t offered to accompany me back here, this trip probably would never have happened.”

“Huh, really?” Ten says. Mark hears shuffling, his only warning before he’s abruptly pulled back by his shoulder and facing Ten, who’s looking at him with hypercritical appraisal. “Let’s start over, shall we? Who are you and what are your intentions with Hyuckie?” he all but demands, and suddenly Mark feels like he’s back in the cafe again, being interrogated by Kim Heechul.

Donghyuck falls over on his bed from the force of his laughter, shaking with mirth as he clutches his stomach. “I hate you,” he gasps in between fits of laughter. “I hate you, so, so, much.”

“Yah, you guys are so loud!” someone says, and they all look up to see Youngho stepping into the room, placing his hands on his hips in faux chastisement. “Settle down before Auntie gets a noise complaint because of you guys!”

“Oh, like  _ you’re _ the epitome of a quiet and law-abiding citizen,” Ten says, rolling his eyes, but he does release Mark, and gets up from Donghyuck’s bed. “Don’t think that I’ll forget about this, Lee Donghyuck. You do  _ not  _ pull one over me. I will make you regret ever catching me off guard, mentally and emotionally.”

“Yes, yes,” Donghyuck says, amused.

“Are the theatrics over?” Youngho says, his expression somehow suffused with the air of a long-suffering man. “Come on down for dinner, then - Auntie says Jeno and Renjun are coming back, too.”

“They are!” Donghyuck confirms happily, and he scrambles to get up from his bed. Mark quietly gets up to help him, supporting him and handing him his crutches. Donghyuck smiles at him gratefully, and they miss the inquisitive eyebrow that Ten shoots at Youngho, who makes an equally curious face.

A delicious smell greets them as they go downstairs, the sound of something sizzling on a frying pan cutting through the air. Mr. Lee smiles at them from where he’s wiping the dusty side of one of the bookshelves in the living area.

“Finally decide to come down and join the living, huh?” he says teasingly to his son. “Was the reunion with Ten as explosive as you made it sound? I swear I could hear you boys wilding it up from down here.”

“Ten-hyung started it,” Donghyuck says automatically, laughing when he gets a pinch on the side from the man. He’s since stolen one of the sweaters in Donghyuck’s closet, covering up his body against the chill that’s trying to creep inside the house. “He started being loud first!”

Mr. Lee rolls his eyes affectionately. “Go help your mother in the kitchen,” he says in reply, returning to cleaning the bookshelf. Over by the stove, Mrs. Lee is busily cooking up a storm, with Taeil helping quietly beside her.

“Donghyuck, I’m useless in the kitchen,” Mark whispers urgently, making Donghyuck laugh.

“Don’t worry, Mom wouldn’t make you help out, you’re a guest,” he reassures him, pinching Mark’s cheek. “Be prepared for the inevitable interrogation later at dinner, though. I’ll try my best to protect you, but between Mom, Dad, Youngho-hyung, Taeil-hyung, and Ten-hyung, don’t expect to be getting much reprieve while we’re eating.”

Mark groans, pushing Donghyuck’s face gently. “I’m going to die,” he moans, resigned to his fate.

There’s the sudden sound of a car pulling up outside, faint but unmistakable. Mr. Lee lowers his cloth to look back at his son. “Now who could that be?” he wonders. He makes his way to the front window, followed closely by Donghyuck and Ten.

Mark leisurely comes up behind them to peek over their shoulders - his jaw falls open when he sees a shiny Tesla, the side doors lifting  _ up _ instead of the normal way that cars do. Two boys, one much taller than the other, get out of the backseat, too far away for Mark to make out their features.

“That’s Chenle’s family’s car,” Ten says, and Mark can see the way that Donghyuck stiffens ever so slightly.

“Jisung,” Mr. Lee says, before scratching at his head. “He wasn’t supposed to come back until tomorrow!”

“Jisung?” Mrs. Lee repeats, hurriedly coming up behind him. “What is he doing here? He’s not supposed to come home yet!”

The taller figure runs up to the front door, the other just barely trying to keep up with a casual jog. In no time at all, he’s knocking on the door. “Mom! It’s me! I’m home!”

The voice is surprisingly deep, and Donghyuck pulls away shakily from the rest of the group as Mrs. Lee goes to open the door. In an instant, Mark reaches out to pull Donghyuck’s trembling hand into his own, squeezing tightly and trying his utmost to convey his reassurance and support.

Mrs. Lee opens the door to reveal two boys, both dressed in casual clothing for lounging around at home. The taller one looks breathless, probably from the way he almost sprinted to the house, his eyes roaming around until his gaze lands on Donghyuck.

“Lee Jisung, I thought you weren’t coming back until tomorrow - ” Mrs. Lee begins, but she’s cut off by her own son.

“Chenle said that one of his cousins overheard Jeno-hyung saying that Donghyuck-hyung was back.” Jisung blurts. Hearing his name fall from his younger brother’s lips does something to Donghyuck, whose breath hitches as he leans back slightly into Mark’s chest.

The other boy, presumably Chenle, peeks over Jisung’s shoulder and gasps when he sees Donghyuck. “It  _ is _ him!” he says, practically in a stage whisper. “Meimei was right!”

Mrs. Lee sighs in disbelief. “Of all the people to spoil the surprise, I never would’ve guessed that it would be Jeno…” She turns back to Donghyuck and makes a pointed gesture, motioning her head towards Jisung as if nudging him to say something.

Mark squeezes his hand, prompting him to speak. “Hi, Jisung,” Donghyuck manages to say, sounding like he’d swallowed something odd. He spreads his free hand out lamely, unsure of what to do. “Long time no see?”

Everyone visibly winces when he says this, including himself and even Chenle, who’s still standing outside in the cold behind Jisung. Jisung, for his part, says and does nothing, not giving any indication that he’s feeling the sharp breeze cutting in behind him at all. His mouth opens and closes several times, the half-baked sentences getting aborted in his throat.

They all stand there like that until Chenle, obviously getting fed up, clears his throat pointedly. “Jisung-ah, I know you’re emotionally constipated and all, but it’s freezing outside and I really want to go in. Also, not to ruin your moment or anything, but if you don’t go over there and hug Donghyuck-hyung  _ right now _ then  _ I’m  _ going to.”

This seems to jolt Jisung back into reality, and he hastily scrambles inside as Chenle follows, closing the door behind them. Appeased, the frown on Chenle’s face is instantly replaced with a wide, enthusiastic smile, clearly itching to run over and hug Donghyuck like he’d said. “Jisung, say something,” he whispers, poking Jisung in the side.

“Chenle, it’s okay, he’s probably - ” Donghyuck starts, but he’s cut off by Jisung, just like his mother had been.

“Are you staying for my birthday?” Jisung asks, and it’s fearful and hopeful and heartbreaking all at once.

“I - ” Donghyuck breaks off, the syllable getting caught in his throat. He inhales, then exhales, before looking at Jisung with a small smile and a glimmer of hope in his eye. “I’m staying for two weeks.”

“Oh,” Jisung says, blinking. “That’s - that’s nice. I’m - glad.”

There’s another beat of silence for a moment or two, before both Chenle and Ten let out twin groans of frustration. “Oh my god, just hug each other already,” Ten says, at the same time that Chenle groans, “Can you please hug Donghyuck-hyung already so I can, too? I’m trying really hard to let you have your moment right now.”

Everyone chuckles, a low rumbling sound, and that’s all it takes for Donghyuck to release Mark’s hand and spread his arms out in an invitation, apprehension and hope warring for dominance on his face. Jisung hesitates for a second, then two, then three, but when he finally walks over to Donghyuck, there’s nothing but certainty in his pace, running the last few steps and slamming gently into his older brother.

“Yah, when did you get so tall?” Donghyuck asks, having to reach up to cradle Jisung’s head. Seemingly overcome, Jisung bends his knees and leans down to tuck his face into his brother’s neck, not saying anything as he clings tightly onto Donghyuck.

“Camera, camera!” Mrs. Lee whisper-yells, and suddenly everyone is scrambling to pull out their phones and document Donghyuck and Jisung’s extended hug.

“Hey, don’t take pictures of me while I’m emotionally vulnerable!” Donghyuck complains, causing Jisung to laugh into his shoulder. Youngho circles them, taking pictures in rapid succession from multiple angles. Unable to resist any longer, Mrs. Lee moves forward to wrap her two sons in an embrace, followed shortly by her husband, who wraps his arms around his family.

“Welcome home, Donghyuck-ah,” Mrs. Lee whispers, and Mark swears he’ll never see a lovelier sight than Donghyuck’s answering smile.

-

**BOSS HEECHUL @kimheenim** missing my son

_ [10.9k replies | 63.1k retweets | 120k likes] _

**Full Sun☀ @official_haechan ** i’m not your son go away

_ [11k replies | 62.9k retweets | 119.2k likes] _

**BOSS HEECHUL @kimheenim** @official_haechan :(

_ [10.7k replies | 59.3k retweets | 118.7k likes] _

**secret haechan stan @1vyPrincess ** what kdrama is this

_ [234 replies | 1.8k retweets | 2.3k likes] _

_ [View more replies...] _

-

_ He _ arrives at ten in the evening, long after dinner had finished.

Mark supposes Donghyuck’s peace really couldn’t have lasted long.

He should’ve known something was up when Donghyuck stiffens on the couch, Chenle and Jisung leaning on either side of him as a random cartoon plays on the television. They’re basically just waiting for him to finish setting up the Switch, which Chenle had somehow found in its hiding place and subsequently yelled out for Jisung to see. Mark supposes they can blame their own lack of foresight for not wrapping the gift or hiding it better, but the smile on Donghyuck’s face after seeing Jisung and Chenle yell excitedly over the gift is indication enough that it’s worth having the surprises spoiled early.

Mark looks up from where he’s figuring out how to connect the Switch to the television set (he’s a software designer. damn it, it literally shouldn’t be taking him this long) to see Donghyuck looking at his phone, face carefully blank as he scrolls through the screen.

“Donghyuck?” Mark calls out, prompting the other to look up. Chenle and Jisung are half-asleep on either side of him, nestled cozily against him. “Is something wrong? What’s the matter?”

Some of the tension bleeds from Donghyuck’s face at Mark’s concern. “Jeno just texted me. He’s -  _ they’re _ coming over,” he explains vaguely, causing Mark to frown. Their reunion had gone over so well, earlier - he doesn’t understand why Donghyuck would suddenly look so conflicted about Jeno and Renjun coming back, especially when they’d promised to be back by today in the first place.

As if to punctuate his statement, there’s a sudden knock on the door, waking both Chenle and Jisung up. “Coming!” Mrs. Lee says, appearing from seemingly nowhere to answer the door. “Oh, hello, Jeno, Renjun, you missed dinner, I thought you would - ” Here, she breaks off in a delighted gasp. “Oh, Jaemin! You’re back! Did you just fly in?”

There’s a soft, melodious laugh after her question. “Yes, Auntie, I got the last flight in from Seoul. Jeno and Injun picked me up from the airport, so they couldn’t come back for dinner, I’m afraid.” The owner of the voice is silent for a beat, before continuing: “Is Donghyuck really here?”

“Yes, he’s inside! Come in, come in, you must be starving. Airplane food is no substitute for a good meal.” Mrs. Lee makes her way over to the couch, smiling widely. “Donghyuck, Jaemin’s here to see you! He just got back from Seoul today, too!”

Before Donghyuck has a chance to reply, Jeno and Renjun walk in, followed closely by another boy who looks around the same age as them. Dressed in a stylish cashmere sweater and a smart tweed coat, he looks less like a student and more like a model who’s stepped straight off a catalogue, his dark brown hair falling attractively over his eyes. His gaze falls on Donghyuck, charged with more feeling than Mark can interpret for the brief moment he sees his expression.“Hi, Hyuckie,” he breathes out, a sweet smile crossing his face, and he walks forward, stopping abruptly just a few steps from the couch.

Mark watches as Donghyuck regards him, almost warily, a multitude of emotions crossing his face as he looks at his friend’s face. Eventually, he smiles back, the motion delayed as though he tried to stop it but in the end couldn’t help it. “Hi, Nana,” he says, and as Jaemin beams, closing the gap between them, wrapping him in an embrace too tight and too tender to be less than intimate, Mark suddenly feels as though he’s watching from the outside.

For the first time since meeting Donghyuck at the cafe, Mark truly feels the distance between them, a gaping chasm that he’d childishly, foolishly ignored.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> People on Twitter who guessed that the other love interest would be Jaemin... y'all get no prizes I was so incredibly obvious.
> 
> Thanks for reading all the way through! I hope the next chapter doesn't take two months lol. Leave a kudos and a comment if you liked it, it really makes me happy when I read your thoughts. Thanks again!
> 
> -
> 
> talk to me! I draw art too
> 
> [(art) twitter](https://twitter.com/lacie_draws) | [cc](https://curiouscat.me/lacie_draws)

**Author's Note:**

> talk to me! I draw art too
> 
> [(art) twitter](https://twitter.com/lacie_draws) | [cc](https://curiouscat.me/lacie_draws)


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